Null Moon
by soulful-sin
Summary: During a time where black magic runs high, Timmy makes a wish with unintended consequences.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: This gets a little creepy. If I do continue, it'll probably be in the vein of A Boy and His Poof, where I try to taper down the darkness somewhat. I'm not sure if I'm continuing this, so be advised. Also, slightly AU- Poof doesn't exist in this universe.

Null Moon

* * *

><p>Every once in a while a fairy suffered tremendously bad luck. It happened during a blue moon, when the year in question was a leap year, and the sky was red at night. Normally, they managed to avoid any extensive wishing during that time period and stuck to the basics. Timmy Turner had always proven an exception to the rule. No matter how they tried to warn him that big wishes were a bad idea, he ignored them. Then again, Wanda supposed she should have known better. Timmy balked at the idea of listening to good advice on the best days.<p>

This was not one of those days.

The temperature had dropped to the low thirties and Cosmo and Wanda disguised themselves as a coat and hat to help keep Timmy warm. Fog obscured visibility and the rank smell of rotting flesh caused all three to shudder. Cosmo was trying to hold his nose as a coat by burying his face against Timmy's stomach. He accidentally bit him, Timmy swatted at his godfather, and Cosmo whined and returned to facing outward.

"Why is it so cold and smelly?" Timmy complained. "Weren't we just in my bedroom, like, five minutes ago?"

"I tried to warn you, sport," Wanda replied. "But you wouldn't listen."

"It's close midnight and something evil's lurking in the dark…" Cosmo sang. Wanda couldn't jab him from atop Timmy's head, so she blew him a raspberry.

"Under the moonlight, you see a sight that almost stops your heart…"

"What are you singing?" he asked. "And…does anyone else hear that unearthly wailing?"

"Hey!" Cosmo protested. "My singing's not that bad!"

"Not you, hun," Wanda said and then muttered, "though you were a little off key."

Cosmo stopped singing, to her relief, and groans filled the air. Shuddering, Wanda pressed down onto Timmy's head for security. Her husband clung to Timmy's back. The unidentified moaners interspersed their cries with sobs and accusations, the voices too familiar for comfort. She changed into a large dog to protect Timmy while Cosmo shifted into a hoodie so Timmy didn't lose warmth from his head.

"Cosmo…Wanda…" The wails rose in volume, their words audible now, and Cosmo whined, cringing against his godson. Wanda snarled, digging her paws into the mud and touching cold, brittle bone. Startled, she jumped. Their audience seemed not to notice.

"Guys, what's going on?" Timmy said.

"Remember when I told you 'horrible things could happen'?" Wanda asked.

"Yeah, but you say that about all my wishes," he scoffed. "I didn't think anything would actually happen."

"She doesn't say that about all your wishes," Cosmo input. "Just the really stupid ones!"

"You wished you could meet the godchildren who didn't grow too old for us, right?" she asked, her voice rising to drown out the cries. It didn't work. She shuddered.

"So you brought us to a graveyard?" Timmy screeched.

"We didn't bring you anywhere," Wanda retorted. "I told you—dark magic is afoot today."

"You expect me to believe that all your other godchildren just up and died?" he scoffed. "Wow, you've got a great track record. Is it too late to switch godparents?"

"It wasn't our fault!" Cosmo protested.

Shadows shuffled closer and out of the group, figures emerged. One of them, a girl with long, stringy blonde hair, broke free from the pack and approached them. Wanda retreated, baring her teeth and guarding Timmy. Cosmo shifted into a dog beside her and Timmy shivered, missing the extra warmth. Confused, he looked around and backed up too, tripping over a stone in his path. Wanda heard him fall, along with the ensuing crack, and rushed to his side. He'd tripped over a gravestone.

"Sport, are you okay?" she whispered.

"Yeah," he whispered. "My arm feels kind of funny, though. Is it supposed to bend that way?"

Grimacing, she materialized her wand, squeezed it between her teeth, and healed him. The girl had stopped a foot away from Cosmo, cocked her head at the fairies, and then smiled cruelly at Timmy. Timmy rose to his feet with a hand on Wanda's back. He clenched her fur.

"Hello, Cosmo and Wanda," a sugary sweet little girl said. She stood at Timmy's height and had died at his age. Her stockings had torn, though the dirt hid most of the damage. She had partially destroyed Mary Jane's, with the soles hanging off and toes poking through the front. Either the fog or decay had dyed her taffeta dress grey and it hung to her knees. A long, jagged scar ran behind her ear and along her back, though this was something one would only know through experience with her. Cosmo had frozen, shaking, and inched closer to Timmy and Wanda.

"Hello, sweetie," Wanda said cautiously.

"You never visit me," she accused. "You never visit any of us."

"We've been busy," Cosmo lied.

"Busy with all those other children you let down?" she asked, cocking her head. "What makes _him _so lucky? He'll die just like the rest of us."

"Okay, I've met one creepy girl. Done with this wish," Timmy said. "It's not even Halloween anymore. Let's go."

"Oh, you're not going anywhere," she promised. She stared hard at the fairies. "You didn't show up for my birthday. Or my death day. You weren't there when Daddy tried to fix me."

"Um, guys?" he prompted. "Explanation?"

"Early—early on," Wanda said, gulping, "people used to believe in shock therapy. That you could—that you could 'fix' someone if you electrocuted them."

"What was wrong with her?" Timmy asked in a low whisper that carried.

"My mommy died," the girl answered, advancing so they stood in a small, clustered group. She rubbed Cosmo's head and he whined, cringing into Timmy. Snarling, the girl grabbed Cosmo by the throat and both fairies yelped, Wanda torn between protecting Timmy and rescuing her husband.

"They were supposed to fix it," she continued, ignoring her former godparents. "But Daddy didn't like that I was so sad. So he tried to make me better. 'All better now, Rosalie'."

"Let go of him," Wanda hissed. Rosalie smiled, her face pale and lined with dirt and grime. Her hand around Cosmo's neck unclenched and she released him. Panting, he fell to the ground and regained his breath. He seemed all right, save for his tail twitching.

"Then one day, Daddy heard me talking to Cosmo and Wanda and talking about fairies. He said he'd make sure I was fixed personally…" She smiled, a rictus that made Timmy shudder. He gathered Cosmo and Wanda to him and hugged them. Cosmo, wheezing, managed a halfhearted nudge against Timmy's hip.

"And they never came back. Never again," she said in a singsong voice. "Poor Rosalie. Poor Cosmo and Wanda."

"I wish we were home!" Timmy said. Cosmo and Wanda held up their wands and they deflated. Rosalie cocked her head to the right and grabbed Timmy by the shoulders. She brushed her dead lips against his, he screamed, and she hopped backward. Fingers digging into Cosmo and Wanda's fur, she yanked them back. They kicked, smacking her with their tails, and propelled themselves away from her. For a dead girl, she had a strong grip. When they tried to move, something impeded their progress.

"Guys!" he cried. He wiped his mouth and dashed after them; whatever force compelled them to her side forced him down to the ground onto her gravestone. She giggled, a sound raising the hair on the back of their necks, and rubbed Cosmo's neck. Particularly sensitive after being strangled, he turned his head to bite her. She pressed against his jugular and he stilled.

"We'll stay here forever, won't we?" she chimed. "Then, when Timmy dies, he'll be just like us. Isn't that right, Ronnie? Cate? Melissa? Jeremy?"

"I wish we were home! I wish we were anyone but here! I un-wish this wish!" Timmy cried, standing and staggering. Wanda saw matted blood on his temple.

"He's hurt," she whispered to Cosmo.

"Good," Rosalie barked. She dragged his godparents backward and the fight drained out of her. Suddenly, she felt lethargic and weak. Cosmo, beside her, slumped. Her claws left trails as she fought to reach Timmy. Snickering, Rosalie slammed her fist onto Wanda's head. Dazed, Wanda howled and scratched herself by accident.

"Sit, stay, don't roll over," Rosalie intoned. "We'll be right back."

She dropped them and stepped into the mist. Wanda knew she was still around, could sense her presence, and concentrated on tracking it. Timmy collapsed beside them.

"I know I don't normally say this, but…I'm sorry and I made a bad wish. So why can't we go home?" he asked.

"Because Da Rules state you can't interfere with true hate?" Cosmo offered. His voice was hoarse.

"I don't know, sweetie," she replied. "This has never happened before."

"Maybe it's just bad luck," he answered. "Maybe we need good luck."

"We're supposed to be the embodiment of good luck," she reminded him.

"And look how well that turned out," Cosmo observed.

"Maybe we should call Jorgen?" he asked. "Jorgen Von Strangle, toughest fairy in the universe! Get your butt down here!"

They waited, the moaning a background noise she couldn't tune out. It set her teeth on edge and she tilted her head to investigate Timmy's injury. He was still bleeding and, guessing her wand probably wouldn't be of much assistance, she licked the blood off his forehead. Startled, he lifted his head.

"I'm helping," she said. "Fairy saliva has magic properties, remember?"

"Is there anything you guys produce that doesn't involve magic?" he huffed.

"Uh…" Cosmo started and Wanda hushed him with a paw. She knew what he was about to say.

"They aren't really going to claim you as their godparents again, are they?" he inquired.

"They can't," Wanda said. Another shape materialized from the mist, snarled, and stomped its way toward them. It stopped, a vague fairy shaped blob, and snapped orders. The mist did strange things with his words; it distorted them, dropped phrases from sentences, and rendered him like a poorly tuned radio station. Timmy shivered, stroking Wanda's stomach, and Cosmo sat in front of him. At a loud clap, Wanda lifted her muzzle from Timmy's head wound.

"Tiny fairies," Jorgen growled. He stopped a few feet in front of them. Behind him, five dead and infuriated godchildren stomped their feet. One of them tugged on Jorgen's wand; another grabbed the first from behind to help yank it from the massive overpowered creature. Wanda and Cosmo growled, snapping their jaws at the children.

"I warned you not to make a wish today!" Jorgen reprimanded.

"Yeah, yeah, I know," Timmy complained. "I got it now. Jeez, does everyone have to remind me?"

Lightning flashed before their eyes, not a natural occurrence but something purple and acidic. Cosmo whined and she felt wind against her face. When her vision cleared, albeit with eyes still tearing, she saw five dead children cradling Jorgen's wand. Their clothes were in various states of disrepair, though none looked to be older than Timmy's age. Dirty hair, impossible to tell the color now, covered their eyes. She knew them well, these shades from time past. Wanda's stomach clenched and she glanced at her husband, on the ground again with his paws over his eyes.

"And that is why," Jorgen said. The leader, Rosalie, stepped in front of the other girls and boy to raise the wand high. It took additional support for her to lift it.

"Can't you just take it back?" Timmy asked. "I mean, it's _your _wand."

Jorgen glared, snatching the wand back. The top lit up, though no one had spoken. Beneath their feet, the ground trembled and Timmy dove for his godparents. He landed with his arms around them and looked up. Rosalie had left off with the wand to grin cruelly.

"You should be the dead one," she said.

"That is not how that works," Jorgen growled.

"Ring around the rosey, pockets full of posey…ashes, ashes, we all fall down…" the group chorused. Timmy hugged his godparents tighter and his vision lightened, fading to white.

**…**

The next thing he became aware of was that it was warm, morning, and the sun shone in his face. He grinned, bouncing to his feet.

"I don't know what just happened, but way to go," he said. His arms felt strange and he rubbed them. "Take me home now, guys. Guys?"

Impatient, he looked at the dogs on the ground. Rather than pink and green, they were both ordinary black Labrador Retrievers. They were also ordinary, dead black Labrador Retrievers. Timmy shuddered, hugging himself. The graveyard was clear, no sign of the dead children or Jorgen, but also no sign of his godparents.

"Cosmo and Wanda?"

There was no reply. Growing concerned, he stomped his foot on the ground. It gave way beneath him and left a hole at least six feet deep. Screaming, Timmy grabbed the headstone as the ground beneath him crumbled. Where he had stood was a coffin. His heart pounded.

"Very funny! I learned my lesson. Now, where is everyone?" he asked.

The headstone lurched, bucking like a live animal, and tossed him onto the coffin. Slammed onto his back, the breath knocked out of him, he choked. Coughing, he curled into a ball and waited to regain his breath. When he had, he sat up and rubbed his sore lower back.

"Jorgen?" he whispered.

His skin crawled. _"You should be the dead one."_

It was, perhaps, a good thing that Wanda wasn't here to witness this. Shaking, realizing just how quiet the world was, without cars or the sound of talk as people bypassed the cemetery, Timmy cursed. His words provided the only sound. His teeth chattered and he hugged himself.

Wait. If he was the only person here, how was he going to escape this grave? He tried jumping, but of course a three and a half foot tall child stood no chance of escaping. In fact, it only frustrated him further. He had to stop when his headache and his backache made him desperate enough to pitch headfirst into the soil, spit it out, and lie on his back on a coffin. He'd had better days.

"Anyone? Anyone at all?"

He looked for leverage. No one had been stupid enough to leave a shovel for him to use to lift himself. He punched a hole in the soil and it crumpled, like dust. Puzzled, Timmy turned around and spread the soil like he was trying to swim through it. It parted easily. Disturbed but not questioning his luck, he forced his way to the surface.

The dirt turned to ash in his mouth and he spat it out, kicking and struggling his way up. The dirt coated his hands, face, and every available inch of skin it could find. Closing his eyes, he spat constantly, trying to dislodge all the dirt in his mouth that he swallowed. His push upward was part desperation, part uncontrollable shaking. Everything he touched fell apart. His heart was beating. He wasn't dead. He told himself that.

His heart was beating. He couldn't be dead. Dead people had no pulse. His heart was beating. Cosmo and Wanda were gone, but he wasn't dead.

That didn't answer where they went, but he had other priorities right now. He spent the next five minutes flailing like a fish out of water until he found solid ground, pulled himself up, and panted, staring at the sky with eyelashes covered in gunk. He'd lost his hat somewhere and didn't bother to retrieve it. Lying back, he expected to feel the sun's warmth, the usual California weather.

The sun wasn't hot. In fact, what he'd thought of as warmth before had belonged to the dogs, which must have died minutes earlier. This prompted another round of cursing, as well as staring at the sun. It was close, directly overhead, and should have given him a summer blaze. Instead, it resembled the time he had wished everyone was the same and it was washed out, only offering the hint of warmth with none of the actual presence.

He had to move soon, though he was reluctant. Still, he had to know whether there was anyone else here, anyone he could talk to about getting home. Timmy Turner might've been an average kid, but he knew enough to tell he wasn't in Dimmsdale anymore.


	2. Tempo

**A/N:** I started this on a whim yesterday. I enjoyed writing it, though I think I'll abstain from doing terribly long chapters.

Chapter Two: Tempo

Timmy started walking, assuming once he did so, he'd find someone or something to guide him. Already, he'd wandered past the cemetery's limits and into the main town. Everything looked the same as it did in Dimmsdale, except all the buildings were vacant. Occasionally, he thought he'd see something out of the corner of his eye, but it was gone before he took a closer look. His footsteps made no sound and, in one panicked instant, Timmy thought he couldn't hear himself breathing.

Pressing his hand against his chest, he worked on breathing as loudly as possible. This place was starting to freak him out. Without a sun and no other lighting he could see, grey overlaid everything. It was almost like when he'd wished everyone was exactly the same, except minus the blobs he'd come to expect. This felt like purgatory minus the other souls. Timmy shuddered, exhaling sharply and still not hearing it.

"I'm not dead, am I?" he asked.

His words fell flat, as though, once uttered, they lost all power. Disturbed, he rubbed his arms. The movement he saw from before had reappeared and a figure crept closer to him from between the buildings. Timmy darted forward.

"Hey!" he called. "Who's there?"

Picking up speed, aware he was the slowest runner in his class, he tripped and tackled the figure. Up close, he saw it was a child with a purple hoodie and black pants. Pulling back, he sat up and helped the person to his or her feet. For insurance, he'd grabbed their wrists to keep them from running away. He still had no idea who it could be, because they'd hidden their face underneath the hood.

"I'm not dead, right?" he asked. He shook the kid's wrists. "Right? I'm not dead and you're not dead! _Right_?"

The kid didn't answer. He went limp. Timmy's heart kicked up and he shook him harder, hard enough to make his teeth rattle. The hoodie fell back and a boy with bright purple eyes, green streaks in his curly purple hair, and a crown above his head stared at him. By Timmy's estimates, he looked a little younger than him. He could have been anyone, without the crown—his purple hoodie and black jeans were almost nondescript. Stunned, Timmy released him.

"Who are you?" he demanded.

The boy shook his head and looked at Timmy sadly. In a soft voice, he whispered, "Timmy."

"Dude, who _are _you?" he asked. "I know you're a fairy, but you're freaking me out. How do you know who I am?"

He was a fairy, but he was a child. Timmy had never met any children fairies before. His godparents had never mentioned the possibility to him and it had never crossed his mind to ask. Puzzled, he met this child's eyes. The boy's lower lip quivered and he flung his arms around him.

"A little close, don't you think?" he asked.

"Be brave, Timmy," he whispered. Startled, struck by the feeling that he knew the boy or that he might know him soon, he hugged him back. The instant his arms encapsulated the slight form, the boy vanished into the fog. Heart in his throat, Timmy brushed his hands across the space he'd occupied.

Unnerved, he stayed where he was. Nothing else moved, nothing he could see, and he huddled on the spot. He wished that boy would return. He wished someone would appear and talk to him. In this strange world where he could hear himself talk, but not hear himself breathe, he needed a companion. Hell, he'd settle for Crocker right now if it meant he wouldn't have to be alone. He hadn't been alone since he'd gotten Cosmo and Wanda over a year ago.

"Guys?" he called. "Anyone?"

Something woofed and Timmy jerked, glancing toward the sound. It echoed in the distance and the phantom dog followed its bark with a mournful bray. After a few seconds, it too faded. Teeth chattering, Timmy settled down on the ground between a donut shop and a pizzeria. Normally, people would have rushed past him or possibly stepped on him. No one was here…

"Cosmo! Wanda!" he cried. Anxious, he ran through every single fairy he could think of, including a couple he knew loathed him. No one answered. Despondent, he wrapped his arms around his legs and tried to come up with a plan.

It didn't help that every time he tried to think of something, the temperature seemed to drop. His teeth chattered and he felt chilled from within. When he turned his head, he thought he saw the boy, but he could also see through the boy to the bank across the street. Perturbed, he decided it wasn't worth it to think about these things. Timmy Turner was a boy of action and besides, this place was creeping him out. Surely there had to be something nearby that wouldn't be nearly as disturbing.

He walked away from the business section and the buildings near him melted away. Usually, going away from the business section meant entering the suburbs, but he found himself at school instead. Scowling, he walked away from school and toward the gates. Where the street should have been, he encountered the school again. Whatever forces compelled this place wanted him to enter…either that or he'd hit his head and his subconscious wanted to torture him. At this point, he figured anything was possible.

Resigned, he walked through the front doors. The purple haired boy had returned and while Timmy could still see through him, he was more solid than he'd been a moment ago. Raising his hand, he pointed to the hallway where Timmy had his classes. The boy's face was troubled and he lowered his gaze.

"Don't you speak beyond really weird cryptic stuff?" he asked. "What's with the pointing?"

The boy grabbed Timmy by the arm and his hand slipped through Timmy's skin. Jolted, they stared at each other and the boy nodded his head insistently toward Timmy's classroom.

"I don't want to be there when I have to be," he protested. "Why the hell would I go there now, when I'm stuck in this weird limbo?"

"Timmy," he said. "Go."

"I'm not going anywhere until I know how you know my name!" he retorted. "Who are you?"

Shaking his head, the boy released him and walked toward Timmy's classroom. Timmy followed, hurtling questions at the fairy child that he didn't answer. The classroom door was open and the room devoid of its usual demeaning posters. At first glance, the room appeared empty.

The fairy boy stood near the desk and, at Timmy's arrival, moved aside. A man with greasy black hair sat grading papers. Timmy recognized him as Crocker, except without the ear on his neck, the hunch, and better teeth. He looked up at Timmy and their eyes met. There was something cold and unpleasant about Crocker's stare and Timmy found himself searching for his godparents before remembering they weren't here.

"Hello, Turner," Crocker intoned. "Have a seat."

"I don't think so," he said. "What are you doing here?"

"Grading papers," he said. "I'm rather disappointed. I haven't found a single failing mark."

"And that's a problem why?" he asked.

"I do enjoy a certain degree of failure," he mused. "Sit, Turner."

"I'd really rather stand," he said. "And not be here. Of all the people who had to be here, why are _you _here?"

"A very good question," he conceded. "Perhaps the better question is why are _you_ here?"

"I asked you," he huffed.

Still standing in the doorway, Timmy looked at the hallway. He heard nothing, no indication of the students Crocker was supposedly grading. The purple haired boy had sat down and looked at Timmy imploringly. Reluctant but unwilling to leave him alone, he settled beside him.

"I suppose you'd have to ask yourself where here is," Crocker said, as though continuing a lecture. "Where is here?"

"I don't know! Why are you asking me?" he snapped.

"You're not a very good student, are you?" he replied.

"You know I'm not," he said and muttered, sullen, "Don't rub it in."

Crocker moved away from the desk and toward the desks as he normally did when starting a lesson. With the ruler in his hand, he cracked it at a desk near them. Timmy flinched; the fairy boy didn't react. Irritated Crocker had gotten to him, he forced himself to focus on him. Attention had never been his strong suit, but he knew Crocker knew something.

"You might be wondering why me? Or better yet, why me without my fairy godparents?" he asked. He managed to say the last two words without spazzing or hitting himself. He spoke them in a normal, level tone. Timmy's eyes widened.

"I can't tell you," he said. "I wouldn't want to give anything away."

"Yeah, you would," he retorted. "Why do you look different, anyway?"

Crocker smiled and stood in front of Timmy's desk. "You weren't the only one with Cosmo and Wanda. Or the only one who remembers them."

Uncertain how much to say, terrified that Crocker knew their names, he said nothing. The boy had shuddered at the names too, his eyes darting around the room. Timmy met his gaze for a second before meeting Crocker's challenging look.

"But…you shouldn't remember them…" he whispered.

Crocker's smile failed to reach his eyes, which contemplated Timmy with a single minded coldness that bordered on homicidal. Forcing Timmy to maintain eye contact, he tilted the boy's head in his direction. Timmy's chest tightened.

"You'll find there are a lot of things here that shouldn't be," he remarked. "And some things that should be but aren't."

"What are you talking about?" he sputtered, wrenching his chin away from Crocker's grasp. He pushed his chair away from his desk.

"Come along, D.J.," Crocker said, snapping his fingers. The classroom dissolved around them and Timmy was alone again.

* * *

><p>Wanda felt like she had the hangover to end all hangovers. The worst part was she couldn't remember drinking anything. Beside her, Cosmo grinned and then winced.<p>

"Makes you wish we remembered what we did, huh?" he asked.

"Did we do anything?" she asked. They were in the park, in bright sunshine that hurt her eyes, and they had shifted into squirrels. Wanda didn't remember changing. Everything beyond this immediate moment drew a blank.

"I dunno. There was a big bang and then look, here we are," Cosmo said happily. "Look, nuts! I love putting nuts in my mouth!"

"Cosmo," she said, interrupting his foraging, "where's Timmy?"

"Who's Timmy?" he asked.

"Silly pink hat, bucktooth, we've had him for over a year…" she prompted.

"Never heard of him," he said.

"You're joking," she said. "Timmy. Our _godson_."

"What are you talking about?" he replied. "We don't have a godson."

"Yes, we do," she pressed. "I know you're an idiot, but this is a bit much, even for you."

"I don't know a Timmy," he said and, to her consternation, he sounded earnest. "Are you sure you're okay? Maybe the conk on the head is making you weird."

Confused, she stared at him. She knew they had a godson. Even if she couldn't remember the specific event that had caused the world to explode and bring them here, she remembered Timmy subconsciously. She lifted her wand to see if she could track him. The wand returned no signal and she silently told it to seek him again. Again, the wand yielded nothing. Scowling, she shook it until sparks flew.

"I can't believe this,' she huffed. "It's telling me there's no such person."

"Duh, because we don't know a Timmy," he replied, rolling his eyes. "C'mon, Jorgen's waiting for us."

Tail flicking briskly, Cosmo darted off with far more energy than she could muster. Groaning, she pursued him. Something was off, besides the fact they couldn't find Timmy, and she couldn't quite put her finger on it.

"What does Jorgen want, anyway? And why not just poof to Fairy World?" she asked.

Cosmo gave her a look that said quite clearly she was the dim one this time. Staring her down with his bright green eyes, he replied, "We haven't been able to go to Fairy World for three hundred years. Are you sure you're okay?"

"I…I don't know anymore…" Her head was aching and she wished Cosmo would stop long enough for everything to start making sense. Everything smelled and looked the same—the temperature was the moderate Californian midsummer she had grown accustomed to. Yet, hadn't it been an earlier month when she and Cosmo had left Timmy? She could have sworn it wasn't summer.

They headed into a small drainpipe, barely large enough to suit them in their current forms, and they turned into flies. It was almost familiar, in the way everything Cosmo said almost made sense, but not quite. She knew, with an ironclad sense, that Timmy was their godson and Jorgen either appeared before them or summoned them to Fairy World. She also knew her communications with Cosmo were off, though that had existed for a while now. What she couldn't tell, however, was what had precipitated this and where Timmy was now. It gnawed at her.

The drainpipe led to a storm drain that spanned a great distance beneath the city. Their travel was silent, leaving Wanda too much time to ponder what was really going on. When they finally emerged back into daylight, a girl with a cruel smile awaited them. Wanda halted, though Cosmo immediately changed back into his normal form and grinned at her.

"Hi, Rosalie!" he chirped.

Wary, Wanda changed into a cat and eyed the girl. The smile hadn't reached her eyes and she surveyed Cosmo and Wanda with barely concealed disdain.

"Where's Timmy?" Wanda ground out, locking eyes with her.

"Timmy?" the girl repeated, cocking her head as if in thought. "I'm afraid I don't know what you mean. There's no Timmy here. In fact, there's no Timmy anywhere."

She accompanied this with a smirk and pounded her fist against her thigh. "He's not your godson anymore."

Cosmo was, as usual, oblivious. "Timmy was never our godson, right?"

"Right," Rosalie confirmed, shooting Wanda a triumphant look. Undeterred, Wanda glared back and kept her own council. Cosmo might not remember what was going on, but now she had confirmation. There had always been something off about Rosalie, something that had disturbed her before her father had attempted to "fix" her. Cosmo's familiarity with her, unfortunately, argued only one conclusion.

"That blow to your head must've been worse than you thought," she taunted. "I'm your goddaughter. A long time ago, I wished I could never grow old and always be a child. You'd always be with me. And now you are."

"That's not what happened!" she protested.

Rosalie snorted. "Prove it."

The power of suggestion placed a vague recollection of this and she shuddered, puffing up. Her fur expanded, making her look twice her normal size, and she backed away from Rosalie's outstretched hand. Cosmo stared at her in concern and she shook her head. For this, it looked like he'd be no help.

She bolted and Rosalie tackled her. Hissing and spitting, Wanda raised her claws threateningly. Rosalie chuckled.

"You're not going to run out on your king, are you?" she mocked.

"Jorgen's not our king," Wanda replied. "He's the ruler of Fairy World, but we haven't had a king and queen since Oberon and Titania."

"Won't he be disappointed to hear that," she purred. "He's waiting for us, you know. He'll realize you're tardy and I'm told the punishment for disobeying a summons is quite harsh."

Wanda stopped struggling. While she still wanted to run, she realized now would not be the right opportunity. She'd have to wait until Rosalie had lowered her guard. She'd also somehow have to convince Cosmo she was right and he was wrong, which would probably be relatively easy. Cosmo tended to agree with her for most things, though his completely rewritten memories worried her.

Rosalie dropped her and she hissed, shifting back into fairy form. With the girl leading the way, she brought them under a tree large enough to serve as emergency housing. It spanned higher than she could see without flying and was the length and width of a two-story house. Blinking, she considered it for a moment before the familiar wand banging brought her back to focus. Jorgen Von Strangle glowered at them, smiled at Rosalie, and resumed glowering at them.

"You're late," he snapped. With his booming voice and her headache, his words went right through her.

"We were held up," Rosalie said and batted her eyelashes.

"I have an important assignment for you three," he intoned. "The gates to the null world have been opened again."

"What do you want us to do about it?" Cosmo asked.

"Null world?" Wanda repeated.

"Where all the riffraff is, the aborted timelines, the wishes that should have been made and weren't, all that stuff," Jorgen said, waving his hand dismissively. "It is your job to ensure that no one from that world escapes into the real world. Find the gates and seal them."

"Of course!" Rosalie said, beaming at him "You can count on us."

"How many gates are there?" Wanda asked. The situation rang false to her, beyond Jorgen not being their king. He'd never ordered them to do anything unless they'd already involved themselves. He certainly didn't assign missions.

"Five," he said. His eyes narrowed. "Close them all and don't let anyone escape. Are we clear?"

"Crystal!" Rosalie chimed. "Thank you so much for the task, Your Highness."

Wanda's mouth opened and closed, a small squeak erupting. Jorgen scoffed, skewering her with a look.

"I will not remind you of the price of failure," he snapped. "Dismissed."

Smirking, Rosalie led the party back the way they had come, though she vanished near the drainpipe. As a fly again, Wanda mulled over the null world. It hadn't existed before, which strongly argued that it had come into being as a result of the events she couldn't recall. Timmy might be there, though he might also not be. If he'd been erased from existence, he could either be there or in a purgatory Jorgen controlled. That would mean Jorgen remembered him and he'd given no signs of that, though she hadn't asked.

They met Rosalie again where they'd started and Wanda cured their headaches. Cosmo, excited and bouncing on his heels as a dog, head-butted her. Wanda shifted into a dog too and hung back.

"Where are we going first?" he asked.

"I don't know," she replied. "Jorgen didn't give us a map. We'll wander around and see if we find anything."

Folding her arms across her chest, she headed across the park with Cosmo and Wanda at her heels. She held herself regally, back straight and head high, and cast nasty glances at anyone who bothered to look her way. Hanging around Timmy in Dimmsdale, Wanda had a sense for most of the people who lived there. She didn't recognize anyone here.

"Don't be a spoilsport, Wanda," she chastised. "Don't you know I love you and Cosmo more than anything else in the world? I love you more than death itself."

The words stopped her and she dug her paws into the ground. Cosmo hesitated, looking from his wife to what he perceived to be their goddaughter. Confused, he met Wanda's gaze.

"That sounds familiar…" he said.

"Of course it does!" Rosalie said, impatient. "I've told you it every day. Now come on, you guys. Life's no fun if you're sitting there doing nothing."

The sun intensified and for a second, Wanda could see through her goddaughter. Cosmo whimpered, nuzzling her, and Rosalie patted him on the head.

"Solar flare," she deduced. "Let's go."

Walking at Rosalie's side, Cosmo glanced back at Wanda. His eyes asked her for a private conversation later and it reminded her that they should have been able to have one now. They should have been able to speak mind to mind. She looked up at the sky—a red moon hung close to the sun. Null moon. She shivered.


	3. The Power of Three

Author's Note: I just noticed that this is almost double the length of the last chapter. Oops. Also, not edited. I'll see about editing it before work tomorrow.

Chapter Three: The Power of Three

Upon trying to think of a place where anyone might exist, Timmy opted to wander toward the mall. Even in a ghost town, he figured someone had to be checking out the comic books and or shopping. Whatever it was that people who didn't exist needed, they had to buy it somewhere. Besides, listening to himself talk made him think of Crocker and the less similarities he had to that crackpot, the better he liked it.

He pushed the revolving doors open and one of them smacked him in the face. Confused, Timmy rubbed his cheek and stared blankly ahead. A plaid clad blur had brushed past him and zipped in front of the mall entryway. Timmy pushed his way into the mall—even if this person was annoying, at least it was someone other than himself. Besides, maybe it might be someone who knew to get the hell out of here.

"So, I said to him, 'yeah, right, as if that would ever happen!' and he was all 'it totally would'," the girl said. She had long, black hair with obsidian glasses. When she turned to face him, he saw she had a pink t-shirt with a plaid skirt and knee-high boots. She wrinkled her nose.

"Hang on a second, Veronica. Some loser is staring at me," she said. It was then Timmy noticed that she appeared to be talking to thin air. The phone he'd expected glued to her ear was absent and she had no Bluetooth or listening device. Her hands were empty as well.

She looked like a cross between Trixie Tang and Tootie. It was uncanny. Startled, he gawked.

"What do you want?" she huffed. "Can't you see I'm in the middle of a very important conversation?"

"With who?" he asked. "I don't see anybody here!"

"With my imaginary friend!" she said. "Do you really think I have time to waste on a simpleton like you?"

"Uh, I'm actually here," he pointed out.

"Idiot," she grumbled. Turning away from him, she headed off toward the food court. As weird as she was, at least she was another person he could talk to. He followed her and, finally, close to the Starbucks vendor, she stopped to glare. It was amazing how even though this world had almost no people in it, they still managed to have a Starbucks. People who didn't exist needed coffee?

"I said I was talking!" she snapped. "What part of that don't you understand?"

"The part where somebody who clearly has no one to talk to is talking to thin air?" he pointed out.

"It's not thin air! It's my imaginary friend!" She huffed. "Anyway, what do you know? You're the one wearing a silly pink hat."

"Isn't there anyone here who isn't crazy?" he grumbled.

Eyes flashing, she shoved him toward the hot dog stand. "Go talk to the boy who works there. I don't have time for you."

Stomping away, she settled into a chair, pushed the one opposite her out, and proceeded to make hand gestures and babble excitedly at no one. Timmy was starting to have low expectations for this boy, if the girl hadn't invented him. Frowning, he pushed himself up over the counter.

"Hello?" he called. "Hello? Is anyone there? Tell me I'm not talking to myself. Again."

"You're not," a boy answered. He had a bucktooth, black hair, and sharp blue eyes. Wearing a red blazer and blue jeans, he exuded cool. Gary leaned over the counter and grinned at his creator. Unnerved, Timmy stared back.

"Gary?" he asked.

"The one and only," he said. "'Sup, Tim-Tim?"

"What are _you _doing here?" he asked. "You're not supposed to be here. You're supposed to be on some stupid island."

Gary frowned. "I've always been here. You're the new one."

"No…" he said and shook his head. "Yeah, I am new, but no, you're not supposed to be here. And what's with that girl?"

"Oh, her," he said and rolled her eyes. "She's not cool. That's Charlotte."

"Tootie?" he repeated.

"No," Gary snapped. "Charlotte. I don't know a Tootie. Charlotte's been here forever, longer than me."

"I don't know what the heck you're talking about," he snapped. "Can't anyone just tell me what's going on?"

"It's like this, Tim-Tim. You got your haves and your have-nots. They just appear here when things go wrong. You, for instance…" he stopped, smirking. Hopping over the counter, he flicked Timmy's hat off his head and tossed it in the trash bin behind them. Grumbling, Timmy went after it and Gary tripped him. Landing on his rear, he glared up at his imaginary friend.

"You were always wrong," he snorted. Timmy scrambled to his feet and hunted for his cap. He found it and shoved it back on his head. Gary took it off his head again and jammed it on his own.

"Dude, what the hell? That's mine," he snapped.

"You don't own anything," Gary said and then looked pointedly at Charlotte. "Not even your sanity."

"Give it back!" he retorted and shoved him. Gary's eyes flashed.

"Fighting. Not cool," he snapped. He tossed the hat behind him and toward the counter. Turning, he watched Timmy scramble to retrieve it. When he turned back to face him, he glared hatefully. Gary's expression was cold and thoughtful.

"Like a dog with a bone," he sneered. "I guess you haven't seen him yet."

"Seen _who _yet?" Timmy huffed, grateful the hat hadn't landed on the heating plate.

"The dog," Gary said. "He makes the rounds."

Folding his arms across his chest, he glanced at Charlotte and then back at Gary. He wished he had someone to talk to who didn't hate him. Fuming, he tried to think of where anyone else could be. Hopefully, the next person he ran into would be less freaky.

"I haven't seen a dog," he snapped. "Tell me there's someone else here."

"There are versions of Cos and Wan," Gary said conversationally and Timmy brightened.

"Finally!" he said. "Where are they? How can I find them? Can they help me get home?"

Gary smiled and the look in his eyes was decidedly unfriendly. Swallowing, Timmy took a step back. Further away, Charlotte continued to ramble to no one. The food court had no music playing in the background, no other noises, and so, her empty words chilled him. Maybe the mall hadn't been the best idea.

"Sure you can find them," he replied. "Don't say I didn't warn you, Tim-Tim."

"Warn me? Warn me about what?" he asked. "You're not making any sense."

"Ask 'Tootie' about them," he snorted. "I'm not saying a word."

Hopping back over the counter, he disappeared behind the service section. Through the glass, Timmy saw him flip him off. Reciprocating, the eleven-year-old boy huffed and settled into a chair beside Charlotte. Up close, she smelled like Trixie Tang too. He was so weirded out.

"Okay, so, I know you don't like me, and you're kind of crazy, but Gary said I should ask you about Cosmo and Wanda," he said. Charlotte stopped in mid-sentence and stared. The blood drained from her face.

"I'm gonna have to call you back," she said and placed her hands on the table. Her purple eyes tracked him; they were the same shade as Tootie's. The unnerving stare she shot him was closer to Trixie, though. He shuffled.

"I thought your imaginary friend was right there," he replied.

"Timmy, was it?" Charlotte snapped. The friendly, bubbly tone had disappeared, replaced by coldness akin to Gary's temperament. She looked back at the hot dog stand, where Gary watched near the cash register.

"Yeah," he replied. "Are you supposed to be Tootie or Trixie Tang? 'Cuz I'm confused."

"My name is Charlotte," she growled. "Charlotte Serket."

The last name rung no bells, distant or otherwise, and he shook his head. Leaning back in her chair, she eyed him. Her fingers drummed a beat that matched nothing he'd heard before. Timmy watched her and was suddenly reminded of Vicky before she went on the offensive. He steeled himself.

"Okay…" he said.

"And now you want to know my life story, huh? Just like everybody else!" she snapped.

"What?" he said. "Dude, there are only, like, five people here. What everybody else?"

"There are more than five people here," she retorted. "The number grows all the time."

"Right, uh…what was I supposed to ask you about again?" he said.

"Cos and Wan!" Gary called from across the food court. At the nicknames, Charlotte stiffened. She pushed herself up from the table and chucked something in Gary's direction. The other boy ducked and it exploded behind the counter. Startled, Timmy jumped.

"What the heck was that?" he cried.

"Oh, I make bombs," she said. "You wanna see?'

"That's okay," he said and smiled, holding up his hands to placate her. "Really. I believe you."

Smirking, she settled back down like nothing had happened. She proceeded to start talking to Veronica again and Timmy sighed, slumping in his chair. Gary had resurfaced to smirk at them. This wasn't getting him anywhere. He didn't know if Charlotte really didn't know anything or if she was just so frigging crazy there was no point.

"Cosmo and Wanda!" he reminded her.

"Oh, they're in the tree house," she said. "You don't want go to there."

"_Why _don't I want to go there?" he asked, losing his patience.

"Two fairies, sitting in a tree…" she sang, swaying back and forth. "Living in a broken r-e-a-l-i-t-y…"

Disgruntled, hoping the tree house he was thinking of was the one she meant, he stormed off. He could feel her gaze at the back of his neck and rubbed it. Gary was leering at him too, but he didn't bother to turn around. Cosmo and Wanda, or whatever passed for them, had to be in the tree house near his house. It was the only tree house he knew.

Backtracking to his house took longer than he wanted. Distance was relative here, so that time spent walking took longer than it should. Or maybe it was because it was so quiet. No cars passed on the streets, no buses rushed past him, and the few people he caught glimpses of shied away. It was like a ghost town. He didn't know how much he could stand of it.

He reached the tree house after what felt like an hour but in reality had only been a few minutes. It looked the same as his, although the wooden steps had rotted. Cautious, he climbed his way up. He told himself he'd ask for their advice, they'd give it because they were Cosmo and Wanda, and he'd be able to leave as soon as possible. Nothing could possibly go wrong.

Livid pink eyes met his when he reached the top rung. Magic blasted him off the tree and he crashed into the soft muddy ground. Groaning, he lifted his head. A pink tail swished out of view and he pushed himself up. The dirt clung to his clothes and he eyed it for a second before launching himself back up again. There had to be a mistake. Wanda couldn't have blasted him out of the tree.

"Hey!" he called. "Hey, Cosmo and Wanda!"

Squeezing the rotting wood between his fingers, he pulled himself up. Wanda, a pink house cat, growled.

"Go away," she hissed.

"I need to talk to you," he said. "It's me. Timmy."

"Never heard of you," she retorted. Wand in her mouth, she blasted him off the tree again. He crashed, hitting his head, and grumbled. Okay, this was starting to hurt. Not to mention he was beginning to get the feeling Wanda didn't want him around.

"I'm your godson!" he yelled up. "You know, Timmy Turner. Silly pink hat. You yell at me all the time for never listening to you."

"I have no idea who you are," she snapped. "Now go away before Crocker shows up."

"Crocker?" he repeated. "You mean the Crocker I met? He isn't even interested in fairies."

"There's more than one Crocker here," she retorted. "Step any closer and you'll be sorry."

"I promise I won't hurt you," he said and spread his hands out to show he was unarmed. "I'm your godson!"

"We don't have a godson," she hissed.

"Where's Cosmo? I want to talk to him!" he called.

Warning sparks shot out of her wand. She puffed herself up, doubling her size, and growled, low and threatening. Startled, he blinked. All he'd done was ask to speak to Cosmo. She was acting like he'd attacked her.

"I want to talk," he repeated. "What's the big deal?"

"You're not getting anywhere near him," she snapped.

"Come down here and say that," he said, his heart pounding. Wanda snarled, climbing down in cat form. Timmy stared at the pink cat glaring at him near his sneakers.

"Why didn't you just poof down here?" he asked.

"None of your business," she growled. There was movement near the top of the tree house and he saw a green parrot poke its head over the side.

"Cosmo!" he cried, relieved. "What the hell is up with Wanda? She's gone crazy."

He launched himself at the tree house again and Wanda slammed him with magic. Stunned, he stared at the cat hissing on his chest.

"I get that you're pissed," he said. "But I don't get why. I didn't do anything."

Pausing, he added, "How come you and Cosmo aren't the same animal?"

Jerking her head back, she hissed at the parrot. It squawked, indignant, and Timmy was able to see more of Cosmo's torso. He also saw what looked like a wing, but it didn't make sense. The feathers stuck up the wrong way, looking like someone had wrenched it behind his back. It was twisted and skeletal.

"I wanted your help," he said in a soft voice, trying not to upset her. "What happened to him?"

"Bad wish," she said.

"But you're fairies. You can heal yourselves," he argued.

Hopping off his chest, she shook her head. Timmy's gaze darted from her to Cosmo. The green parrot stood mournfully at the edge of the tree house. He hopped up and down and flapped his one good wing.

"That's the quietest I've ever heard him," he remarked.

"Cosmo can't speak," she replied.

"What?" he gasped. "You're kidding."

"Do I look like I'm joking?" she growled, baring her claws.

"You look like a cat," he replied. His lip trembled and he tried to calm himself down. He could feel panic mounting. This wasn't supposed to happen. Versions of Cosmo and Wanda should be helpful. They should fix everything.

"That's right," she growled. "I'm a cat. You're barking up the wrong tree."

"But…you're not…" He let it go.

"I suggest you leave here and find someone else to harass," she snarled. "Before Crocker shows up."

The repeated warning struck him as strange, beside the fact that he'd met a Crocker who didn't pose much of a threat. "Why are you guys so afraid of Crocker, anyway?"

Cosmo hopped up and down and almost fell out of the tree house. Wanda cried out, ascending the tree rapidly and shoving him back inside. A metal door covered the entrance and a steel barrier covered the steps.

"My godparents giving you trouble, Turner?" a cold voice remarked and Timmy turned. A younger version of Crocker accosted him. He appeared to be a teenager, handsome with a cruel smile.

"I know I'm going to regret asking this," he said, "but what the heck is going on?"

"Did she tell you?" he sneered. "I bet she said it was a bad wish."

Bewildered, he stared. A small window had appeared in the tree house and pink and green eyes tracked them.

"She might have," he hedged.

"She's a liar," he growled.

"Wanda doesn't lie," he retorted. Glass appeared in the window and the bottom flew up, so that they could hear them better. From here, he couldn't see Cosmo's reaction, but Wanda had leaned forward.

"It was their fault, anyway," he scoffed. "They brought it on themselves."

"Brought _what _on themselves? Why does everyone around here speak in friggin' riddles all the time?" he asked.

"They'll never be together again," he replied.

"They're together right now," he shot back, oblivious.

Crocker seized him around the shoulders and spun him around until they were directly under the window. His hands on Timmy's shoulders were tight and his grip hurt. The older boy had about a foot on him, too, so he towered over him. Despite himself, Timmy shuddered.

"One's a cat and the other's a bird. And only one can talk," he hissed. "And they're stuck that way. Forever."

"I don't get it…" he replied.

"They will never be together. They will never speak to each other again. They'll never enjoy anything romantic, because they can never change into anything else. They're trapped and alone," he cackled. "They'll be miserable forever and it's all because of me!"

Aghast, he barely felt Crocker's fingers digging into him. "Why would you do that?"

"He wanted to punish us for being happy," Wanda answered. "He wanted to ensure we'd never be happy again."

His heart ached for this Cosmo and Wanda. He couldn't believe he'd feel this connected to a random version of Cosmo and Wanda that he'd met five minutes ago, but they seemed exactly like his. It felt like someone had attacked _his _godparents, had intentionally destroyed _his _fairies. Eyes burning, he whirled on Crocker and punched him in the face.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" he seethed. "How could you hurt them like that? They're your godparents! They're more important to you than anyone else in the whole wide world! They're there for you when no one else is!"

"I didn't expect you to understand," Crocker replied, cold, and rubbed his sore cheek. "You're wasting your time with them."

"Get away from them," he snarled. "Go away."

"I'll be back," he promised, grinning malevolently. "I always return."

Crocker was gone, in that peculiar way people had of disappearing here. Timmy watched him fade into the mist and looked back up to see Wanda staring at him. The hostility had vanished; she looked morose. On the plus side, the metal door and steel shield also disappeared.

"Come on up, Timmy," she said in a tired voice. "Maybe we do have something to discuss."

* * *

><p>Within the clubhouse, Timmy groaned at the color scheme. Green curtains covered the windows and pink pillows littered the floor. Cosmo possessed a bird cage he could climb and Wanda had a mound of pillows near the window. There was a bookcase full of books with a TV atop it, though it ran only white noise. Overhead, a candelabra provided light. Timmy expected the murkiness to penetrate the room, but it was bright and cheery in here. He nearly tripped on a copy of Da Rules, lying open near Wanda's pillow mound.<p>

She settled on a pillow and Cosmo hopped beside her. Curling her tail about herself, she fixed Timmy with a fierce stare. As absurd as it was, considering where he was, he was grateful to look at any version of his godparents he could find. He met her stare with a grin.

"Hey," he said. "Uh, _can _you help me?"

"I don't know," she replied. "We've been trapped here for..." she hesitated and looked to Cosmo. The green bird shrugged, preening his feathers. The wing bound behind his head stretched as he moved his neck and he shuddered. Timmy reached for him, thinking maybe he could help him, and Wanda hissed, swiping at him with her claws.

"I'm not going to hurt him," he protested.

"There's a world of difference between permitting you to come in here and trusting you," she snapped.

"I'm not Crocker," he countered, growing heated.

"Maybe not," she conceded. "But that doesn't mean we know who you are, either."

"Everybody else seemed to know who I was," he pointed out.

"Everyone else is human, with the exception of Gary, and probably derivations from your home universe. This world exists in a void and likes to keep its people well informed," she said and snorted. "After all, we're all stuck here until..."

She shrugged. "We can't die, so I guess we're just stuck here."

Cosmo shrugged in agreement. At least, Timmy assumed it was agreement. He could have been just shrugging.

"And you don't know how long you've been here?" he asked.

"In case you haven't noticed, sport, there's no sun. Or moon. It's hard to tell when days begin and end. And none of us age. We're all stuck here at the moment we landed here," she huffed.

"But there's a way out," he persisted. "There has to be."

She shrugged. "Even if there is, Cosmo and I are stuck like this. There's no point in leaving."

"Couldn't Jorgen fix you?" he asked. "I don't really get why you're like this."

"A long time ago, we tried to return. There's no way home, to our home universe. When we realized that, all the other portals shut to us too. You can only stay here for a short while before you're imprisoned."

"Then I'll get out and bring you with me," he vowed.

"Why?" she asked, pink eyes bright. "Why would you do that?"

"Duh, because you're like my Cosmo and Wanda," he scoffed, like it should have been obvious. "Why would I leave you here to rot?"

"There are other versions of us here too. Would you leave the others too?" she shot back.

"I'll take everyone out of here," he replied. "No one should be stuck here."

Cautious, she butted her head against his hand. He stroked her fur and she started to purr and then stopped, as if ashamed.

"Wait, there are more than two of you guys?" he asked.

Curling into a ball, she proceeded to lick her fur. Cosmo settled beside her and preened the uninjured wing. Timmy tried to think of what the wing corresponded with in his normal form, imagined Cosmo with a wrenched back arm, and shuddered. After a moment, the two stopped cleaning themselves and stared at him.

"Well?" he prompted.

"Sorry," she said. "Being stuck in this form for so long has changed the way I think. Yes. There are at least two other versions of us that I know about."

Timmy looked to Cosmo and expected a comment, but, of course, there was none. Wanda continued.

"Where are they?" he pressed. "Can _they _help? How come Gary didn't mention them?"

"One version remains locked in a time loop-I'm not sure how it happened, but somehow, their godchild stopped time. Their Jorgen fixed it, but they're still stuck."

"So, basically, they're useless," he muttered, disgruntled.

She didn't comment. Her gaze shot to Cosmo and then she glowered at Timmy. Abashed, Timmy changed the subject.

"And the other one?" he asked.

"They have no powers," she said. "They sacrificed them to save their godchild."

"Weird," he muttered. "All these versions of you guys running around."

"We haven't actually met them," she clarified. "When you enter this place, you know immediately."

A greater mind might have taken that time to consider her comment and its implications. Timmy wasn't to be boggled down with that. "Then I guess there's no other version of me."

"No," she commented. "The closest there might be is Gary."

"You said when you got here, that the portal to your world closed. But mine's still open, right? So I can go home and take you with me," he said.

"Why?" she asked. "Why would you bring us?"

"Duh, so you guys can be returned to normal and be happy again," he scoffed. "How do we find the portals?"

Lowering her head, she stared at the floor. "I don't know. Ever since Crocker followed us here, we've lived in the tree house. We haven't left it."

"Then how do Gary and Charlotte know where you are?" he replied, confused.

"They've visited," she said. "The downside of staying somewhere is that everyone tends to know where you are after a while."

"Maybe you could help me look for my way home," he said. "Staying here all the time has to suck."

"I would like to go outside," she mused. "It's just…Crocker lives close to us. He comes out every wake cycle to taunt us."

"And you're afraid of him?" he replied. "You've still got your magic."

"We can't physically touch him," she replied. "Weird as it is, we're still bound by Da Rules. And part of the condition of his last wish was that we'd remain miserable—as long as he's here, we're miserable."

"But you're not even in your own universe anymore. How come the wish is still working?"

"The conditions you last leave are what you're stuck in here," she commented. Frowning, she stared at him. "But you're an exception. I still don't know who you are or why you're here."

"That makes two of us," he muttered.

Cosmo rubbed his head against Timmy's arm.

"Three, I guess."

"The others came here when something went badly wrong," she continued. "I'm not sure, but…I don't think you're supposed to be here."

"Duh," he snorted. She hissed, puffing up. Jeez, Wanda the cat was touchy. Cosmo nudged her with his beak, which Timmy noticed was sealed shut. How did they eat? Well, he guessed they didn't need to eat, though he wondered why this world bothered to have a food court if no one ate.

"Why do you want our help, anyway?" she snapped. "We don't know where the portals are and Cosmo can't even fly."

"'Cuz you're the closest thing I have to my godparents here and you're the only people around who don't hate me for no apparent reason?" he replied.

"You really love them, don't you?" she asked.

"Yeah…" he said and turned somber. "I wish I'd listened to them more often now."

She watched him closely, turned and walked toward the tree house's exit. In a minute, Cosmo joined her. They sat there, silent, staring at the yard. Timmy stood behind them and she turned, hitting him in the leg with her tail. Her expression was grave.

"I hope you have a plan," she replied.

"Nope," he answered. "I figure I'll just play it by ear."

Groaning, she launched herself down the steps and landed on her paws. Cosmo scrambled up Timmy's shoulders and he cradled him as he descended. He tried not to crush his wing any more than it already was—he kept shuddering and Timmy had the feeling if Cosmo could speak, he'd be crying in pain. Any pressure on the wing made Cosmo flinch.

"Where did you come in from?" she asked.

"The cemetery," he replied.

"Then let's start there," she decided. "It's as good a place as any."

* * *

><p>The rearrangement of this world set Wanda's teeth on edge. After receiving their assignment from Jorgen, Rosalie had decided to head over to the school and see if the residual magic there might provide any clues. Cosmo and Wanda knew, without consulting each other that they'd head for the Crocker Cave. Yet if Rosalie had rewritten history and removed Crocker from their list, then ostensibly he wouldn't be insane and hunting fairies. There had to be another reason she'd head there.<p>

Cosmo babbled, oblivious to Rosalie's dark looks and Wanda's contemplation. She could conjure up a picture of Timmy, but she didn't want to draw Rosalie's attention away from her husband and back onto her. Jorgen wanted the portals closed, but it might not be his intention. It might be Rosalie forcing her motives onto everyone in the universe. Wanda kicked the ground, but it felt solid. How had a dead godchild rewritten history and other supernatural memories?

She halted for a second and stared at the sky. That red second full moon still hung there, in broad daylight. Cosmo wasn't one to pay attention to portents, but she was. Plus, staring at it gave her the creeps. She wished she could pull him away to talk to him—they wouldn't have even needed that much privacy if the telepathy worked.

The school looked almost the same as it had when Timmy traversed its halls, but there was a lot more fairy dust littering the hallways. She couldn't walk more than a few feet without breathing it in.

"What fairy exploded?" Cosmo asked.

"What?" Rosalie snapped, stopping near a set of lockers a few doors down from Crocker's classroom.

"I think I'm breathing in fairies," he replied.

"I don't understand," Rosalie said. Her eyes narrowed. "I don't see anything."

"See it?" he replied and sneezed. "I'm allergic to it!"

Wanda distinguished pink, purple, and green fairy dust. The pink and green looked to be their shade and that was odd, considering that they hadn't been here recently. Orange also littered the floor, along with grey and brown. Chilled, she shifted back into her normal form and raised her wand. Cosmo mimicked her and they exchanged wary looks.

"I demand you tell me what's going on this instant!" Rosalie shrieked and her eyes had widened in fear.

Cosmo sneezed again and Wanda had a sudden, unwanted remembrance of Doombringer attaching wings and a crown to plaques. Timmy had created Crocker's insanity, but he hadn't done anything to bring about Doombringer's obsession. Unlike their former godchild, Doombringer frightened her. Anyone who could murder a supernatural creature like that deserved trepidation.

"Sweetie," Wanda said, though she used the term of endearment only as a force of habit, "I really don't think we should be wandering around here."

"Why not?" Rosalie snarled. Evidently, somewhere in her afterlife she'd traded her sweet disposition for officiousness.

"Where there's a lot of fairy dust, there are bound to be fairies," Cosmo said and sneezed for a third time. "Wow, who knew I was this allergic to my kind?"

"And this is a bad thing why?" she asked.

"Why would there be fairies here, in the afternoon, when school is over and Jorgen's holding court in the park?" Wanda pointed out.

"Is that a trick question?" Rosalie snapped. "It's because…it's because…it's because…it is."

"You can't beat that logic with a stick!" Cosmo chirped.

Wanda's eyes narrowed. As if to spurn her warning, Rosalie started off at a brisk walk toward Crocker's room. The door was glowing faintly.

"I really don't think we should go in there…" Wanda cautioned.

"Shut up," she snapped. Leaning against the door, she opened it. Bristling, Wanda hung back in the hallway. Timmy was seldom that rude to her. She had to wonder whether something else had happened to Rosalie in the interim, besides suddenly gaining a ton of power. Shuddering, she poked her head around the door frame.

"I found it! I found it!" Rosalie cheered. There was a hole in the middle of the room that led to a grey looking area, identical to this one except all the color had been leeched out. Cheering, Rosalie looked around it. She poked a finger in it, beamed, and turned to her godparents.

"Close it!"

"No," Wanda said. Cosmo replied at the same moment, "Okay!"

He raised his wand and Wanda shoved it down.

"What do you mean, 'no'?" Rosalie snapped. "I give you an order and you obey it. That's how this works."

"Timmy's in there," Wanda snapped back. "I'm not abandoning him."

"Timmy doesn't exist anymore," she retorted.

"Timmy's in there?" Cosmo asked, eying the portal nervously. Wanda sidled closer to it and Rosalie snarled, grabbing their wands.

"I'll do it myself! I wish the portal was closed!" she proclaimed, holding up the wands. The tips glowed, but nothing else happened. Although the wands had magic of their own, they needed a magic user to channel it. She snagged her wand back and retreated, not liking the feral look in her goddaughter's eyes.

"You want Timmy back so badly?" she growled and it sounded like a threat. "Fine. I don't need you to close all the portals. I'll keep Cosmo instead."

"This isn't an either or thing," Cosmo said. Rosalie snarled and Cosmo silenced.

"Get out of there!" she proclaimed, blasting Wanda with Cosmo's wand back. She flew through air and space and felt ill, her vision flickering. She wasn't sure whether her wand was still there or if she'd lost it.

Her back hit something hard and she collided forcefully, sliding down. Groaning, she lifted her head. The world was leeched of color, as it had appeared in the portal, but this was wrong. There was something still off, a shade of strangeness that she felt disconnected to her godson. She tried to rise, but the fall had knocked more out of her than she'd reckoned. So she sat and tried to gain her bearings.

She discovered her wand beneath her right hand. Solid rock to her back didn't stretch beyond her fingertips and she felt carvings in the stone. Somehow, she'd wound up in the cemetery that Timmy had started in. That didn't explain why she couldn't see anything.

She tried to remember where the beam had hit her. Waving her hand in front of her face, she saw only a dim outline. Everything had a murky quality to it and, closing her eyes, she opened them to try again. This time, her hand was barely distinguishable from the surroundings. Her stomach clenched and she cursed.

The wrongness wasn't the world. The wrongness was her. Fairies weren't supposed to receive injuries, partly not as a result of a friendly fairy's wand. Cosmo's wand shouldn't be able to hurt her, since they shared magic. Groaning, she rubbed her head. This was going to make finding Timmy a lot more difficult.


	4. Interlude

Author's Note: No, this isn't a chapter. No, I haven't actually written chapter four yet—I need to work on The Absence of Light first. Yes, a chapter is forthcoming.

Enjoy this in the meanwhile—I am a little obsessed with the alternate Cosmo and Wanda. Could you tell?

Interlude: The Drabbles

* * *

><p>"Mewling"<p>

"How the heck do you know when it's night or day here?" he complained. After a fruitless day of searching, or what passed for a day, they retired to the tree house. Timmy noticed Wanda only let him touch Cosmo when the fairy had no other transportation method. Once they had returned to the club house, she'd positioned herself between them.

"You don't," she answered. "Every sixteen hours of waking, you get tired and fall asleep. That's how it works."

"That stinks," he muttered.

She shrugged and curled up on the pillows. Timmy glanced around—Cosmo had started to clamber into his bird cage and then climbed back down. Aside from the pillows everywhere, there was nowhere to lie down. Nowhere for a human to lie, at least. This place didn't have humans in mind.

"Where am I supposed to go?" he groused.

"I'll give you a bed," she said and grabbed her wand. She turned around, wand in mouth, and bumped into Cosmo. Confused, she stared at her husband. He was staring at her intently and she dropped the wand.

"What is it?" she asked.

Deliberately, lowering himself slowly, good wing pressed against his chest, Cosmo curled up next to her. Wanda gawked, like the concept of sitting beside her husband was foreign. She recovered enough to conjure a bed for Timmy and spun on her paws to stare at him.

"You have your own cage," she said, sounding uncertain.

"He wants to be near you," Timmy scoffed. "Can't see why, crazy cat."

Moving his beak, Cosmo nuzzled her head. Eying him, she lifted her head and rubbed it along his body. He whimpered when her head met his shoulder joint where the broken wing was and Wanda and Timmy started. Jaw dropping, she retreated a few steps. Her claws sprang out.

"He…made a noise," she breathed.

Hesitant, she approached him again. "I haven't heard you make any noise since we've been trapped. Do it again."

Cosmo shook his head.

"Sweetie, I know you can," she said. "Anything. So I know I wasn't imagining it."

Shaking his head, looking startled, the green bird ascended the bird cage again and shut his eyes. Wanda hissed, looking at him with a combination of sorrow and anger. Soundless, she descended back into the pillow pile and rested her head on her paws. She didn't break eye contact. Cosmo, however, appeared to have fallen asleep.

"Maybe it was a fluke," Timmy said, trying to get comfortable under the sheets.

"Maybe…" she replied and closed her eyes. Timmy shut his eyes too, but didn't expect to fall asleep. His small boy metabolism betrayed him and he slipped into a dreamless slumber.

* * *

><p>"Confrontation"<p>

The older Crocker was crude and nasty. He followed the trio around the tree house, though he avoided going too far from Cosmo and Wanda's home. Whenever he showed up, Timmy considered beating his face in. The problem was the boy was taller than him, more vicious, and more cunning than Vicky. The other problem was that he tended to try to hurt Cosmo and Wanda, who were easy prey and harder for Timmy to protect when Cosmo could barely move.

On the second 'day' being stuck there, Crocker caught him staring at his old house. He crept up behind him and grabbed him by the throat. Wanda growled and, shocked, Timmy dropped Cosmo on the ground.

"You're being awfully chummy with my fairies, Turner," he snapped.

"They're not yours," Timmy choked with Crocker's arm pressed against his throat. "You don't deserve them."

"You can't tell me what I do and don't deserve," Crocker sneered. He punted Cosmo the bird away and Wanda launched herself at his leg. Biting and scratching, she attacked her former godson with a vengeance. Crocker retaliated by knocking her into Timmy. Dazed, the fairy faltered and Crocker snorted, whirling away.

"Yeah, I can," Timmy said, rubbing his neck. "You're an asshole."

"And you're an interloper," he countered. "You have no right to touch them."

"After what you did to Cosmo, you have no right to be anywhere near them," he snarled. "What the hell did you do to his wing?"

A flicker of something showed in Crocker's grey eyes. Clenching his fists, he turned away. "That wasn't my fault."

"And I'm supposed to believe you?" he scoffed.

"They're still mine," he snapped. "And if they couldn't make me happy, then they deserve to be miserable."

"No one deserves to be miserable," he retorted. "That's why we have godparents."

"Then where are yours?" he countered.

"They're waiting for me," he replied.

"Yeah, right," he shot back.

"They are!" he retorted. "And when I come back to them, I'm bringing this Cosmo and Wanda too so they can get the hell away from you."

"You aren't taking them," he snarled, standing a few inches away from him. Timmy had to lift his head up to look at him.

"There's nothing you can do about it," he remarked coolly. Wanda nodded, glaring, and Timmy jerked. Cosmo seemed to be saying 'uh huh' with his mouth shut. And if he looked closely, there seemed to be seams along his beak where there hadn't been.

"You're not taking them," Crocker snapped, oblivious.

"Stop me, then," he countered.

"I will," he vowed. "The portal's not there, Turner. You're wasting your time."

Flipping them off, he sauntered away. Wanda hissed and Cosmo used his normal wing to flip his godson off. Timmy laughed shakily. His heart pounded.

"Let's go, then," he said. Cosmo winked and Timmy scooped him up to press against his chest. Using his fingertip, he traced the seam along his beak. It didn't seem to be deep enough for him to open his mouth, but it was something.

* * *

><p>"Useless"<p>

It didn't rain here. It didn't snow here. There were no sun, no moon, and no stars. One couldn't die. Wanda had already tried, though she hadn't told Cosmo about that. She hadn't really told Cosmo about a lot of things. There was no sense in having one-sided conversations, so she didn't speak most days.

On the days she spoke, she rambled. Normally, he'd be the one to drone on and on, but she needed something to break the silence. It hurt and she wouldn't let herself touch him. She told herself it was her fault this had happened. Cosmo seemed to agree, or he would have tried to initiate something.

Then again, the idea of physical intimacy in their current forms was laughable. He'd never be able to hold her again with a broken wing and she'd never be able to look at him without the cat brain hinting he was prey. His beak couldn't open, he had talons rather than hands, and she had soft paws with claws. They weren't made for closeness anymore.

The TV worked sporadically. It picked up random channels from different universes. On the days she didn't talk, she left the TV on to fill in the gaps. She read books to eat up the time she had too much of and she scratched herself to experience the absence of pain. Cosmo had to be in constant pain, but couldn't vocalize it.

All told, they were a perfect match. Silent and talkative, pained and numb. She didn't know how well Cosmo held up under these circumstances, but it wore on her. She poked her head over the side of the tree house in the hopes that someone other than Crocker might show up. They had sensed the world's population growing, but hadn't seen any sign of it. Then again, it was hard to meet people cooped up in a tree.

"Hello! Hello, anybody up there?"

Wanda poked her head around the corner again. A girl with black hair, tied in pigtails, stared up at the tree house. She had on a plaid skirt and black sweater vest with a white shirt underneath. Her purple glasses had a sheen Wanda would have identified with the sun, had there been any sun here. By her estimates, she had to be about twelve—younger than Crocker when he'd doomed their timeline but older than the baby they occasionally saw.

"Hello," Wanda replied cautiously. The girl beamed up.

"Oh, there's someone else here! I told you, Veronica!" she said and turned to a figure glowing dimly. The figure was outlined in green but when she tossed her head, Wanda discerned long blonde hair.

Cosmo shuffled over to the edge and she pushed him away gently. She didn't want him to fall—it'd be a long way back up for someone with a broken wing. Cosmo poked his beak at her head and gazed intently down.

"Who might you be?" she asked. At this point, she was so starved for conversation she might settle for chasing down that damn dog.

"My name's Charlotte," she said. "Who are you?"

Wanda hesitated. In the old world, revealing themselves to humans would get them recalled to Fairy World. She forgot for a second she was trapped as a cat and expected her wings to bristle. Then she remembered she had no wings. Her heart ached and she avoided looking at her husband. Cats couldn't cry.

"Are you okay? I didn't know cats could look sad," she observed.

"I'm fine," Wanda huffed. "I'm Wanda and this is my husband, Cosmo."

"You're talking animals?" Charlotte asked.

"One of us talks," she answered. The pain in her voice stopped her for a second and the human gnawed her lip. Even stuck in a cat form, her eyes were good enough to see things humans might miss.

"Can I come up and say hello?" she asked.

"Better not," she replied. "We're about to have dinner."

"Dinner?" she repeated. "How do you know what time it is anymore?"

Cosmo fluttered his one good wing and hopped over the side. Wanda yelped, diving for him with her claws. She missed, falling off the tree house and into the mud. Growling, she raised herself up off the ground and glared at her husband, within the girl's arms. Charlotte rubbed Cosmo's feathers and he looked, as far as a bird can appear, happy. Wanda was seized by a combination of shock and jealousy.

"He seems to like me," she said. Her expression darkened. "I'm glad somebody does besides Veronica."

Up close, Veronica was easier to see. It was also evident that, although the others might be in purgatory or not quite alive, Veronica was a shade. Startled, Wanda retreated a few steps.

"That's my imaginary friend," Charlotte said and added, "She used to be real, until Vicky got to her."

Wincing, Wanda inched closer to the girl in question. Veronica tilted her head to regard her.

Since Cosmo couldn't speak and she had a fair feeling about what he wanted to ask, she said, "What do you mean?"

"It really doesn't matter," Charlotte said, hugging Cosmo tighter. Anxious, she looked up at the tree. "Can I come in and say hi? I bet you guys don't get much company."

"No," Wanda agreed, her tail twitching anxiously. "We don't."

Cosmo butted the girl's arm, nodded his head up at the clubhouse, and then bobbed repeatedly. With his good wing, he pointed at the steps. Rolling her eyes, she reluctantly agreed to let the girl visit. Cosmo wanted it and he'd been relatively uncommunicative lately. She couldn't deny him, especially when she knew how miserable they both were.

Careful not to dislodge the bird in her arms, Charlotte ascended the steps. Wanda clawed her way up and waited for the girl to get her bearings. After she'd stopped enthusing about everything, she plopped onto a cushion. Veronica floated beside her, silent and unhappy. Wanda could empathize.

"Are you really talking animals?" Charlotte burst out and twisted her pigtail. "Or are you fairies?"

"We're not fairies," Wanda said flatly. She stood, watchful, and her husband sat beside the child. She decided to face them instead. For once, Cosmo looked hopeful. She couldn't exactly describe his expression as happy, particularly because his only expressive features were his eyes, but it was more than they'd had. She tried not to upset him.

"Did you used to be fairies?" she asked. "It's okay. You can tell me. I used to be part fairy too."

Uneasy, she exchanged a look with Cosmo.

"You're a Halfling?" she asked.

"Uh huh," she said. She leaned back into the pillows and fell over. Giggling, though it sounded rather forced, she put herself upright again. She stroked Cosmo's feathers and Wanda hissed, jealous. Quickly, she stopped and Cosmo nudged her hand. Wary, acknowledging the tension, she brushed her fingers across Cosmo's head lightly.

"You're stuck, aren't you?" she asked. "That's what you mean by not being fairies anymore. You're stuck in that form?"

"That's none of your business," she hissed.

Cosmo nodded emphatically and, hopping across the room, grabbed a blank book. Using his talons, he painstakingly carved out 'stuck'. Writing took great effort, since Crocker had ensured Cosmo's talons didn't extend and retract very easily. Once he was finished, he smirked, satisfied.

"How terrible!" she exclaimed and turned to the ghost beside her. "Isn't it?"

Veronica nodded. Wanda avoided looking at her. It was bad enough being stuck in this null world without having to deal with the undead.

"But you still have your magic," she stated, pointing to Wanda's wand at her feet. "Why can't you shift?"

"Part of a wish," Wanda said grudgingly. Cosmo trusted far too easily. She used to trust more easily, until Crocker had come along.

"Wishes are still in effect here?" she asked, frowning. "You're not ruled by Fairy World anymore."

"I know," she hissed, fur bristling. "It's a long explanation."

"It's not like I have anything better to do," she replied, smiling. "I bet we could be friends."

Hesitating, she glanced out the door. She smelled Crocker coming and her nerves went on high alert. Shuddering, she closed the door and curled into a ball. His presence heightened misery and brought about the only thing through the Bond they could share now—combined unhappiness. It was choking, debilitating, and made her want to sob.

Charlotte frowned, noticing her agitation. "Are you guys okay? You just froze."

"We're fine," she hissed.

Cosmo tossed his head and stomped his talons on the floor. It was probably an editorial comment on her lying abilities and she was not amused. Cat instincts rising, she hissed at him and swiped at him with her claw. With a silent shriek, he attempted to fly away on one wing. He fluttered and fell, prompting the cat response of 'prey'. Terrified, he cowered before her.

"Stop it!" Charlotte cried, sweeping Cosmo into her arms. "Why are you acting like this?"

The bird would taste better than the cat food she'd conjured for herself. The bird would taste like fear and adrenaline. She licked her lips and Charlotte backed away, cradling the injured bird against her chest. In the wild, it never would have lasted this long.

"Stop it, stop it!" Charlotte commanded. "Leave him alone, Wanda!"

Her name brought her back to her senses and she collapsed to the floor. Cosmo's green eyes were huge and she blew out a breath that was close to a whimper. When Crocker couldn't act on them physically, his wish still asserted itself. Furious with herself, she clawed at the carpet and tore it to ribbons. She purred, when she wished she could cry, because cats purred at entirely inappropriate moments.

Curling into a ball, she set herself in the far corner of the room. Several long moments passed, where she was aware of the child and her husband. They weren't moving.

"Is she always like this?" she asked.

Wanda had no idea what Cosmo's response could be and bitter laughter burned her throat. "Sometimes, hun, I'm worse."

"You don't want to be like this, do you?"

"What choice do I have?" Wanda retorted, lifting her head to glower. "He's prey and I'm the predator. I could kill him any time I chose."

"You wouldn't," she shot back. "If you could have killed him, you would have by now."

"Don't tell me what I can and can't do," she countered.

"You love him," she answered. "He's your husband. So even when you know you could hurt him, you won't. You restrain yourself."

"Did I look like I was restrained?" she growled.

Cosmo hopped away from the girl to rub his head against Wanda's cheek. In that moment, she remembered endless embraces, endless whispered words and implications, and her heart ached. Hissing, she backed away from him and her eyes flashed.

"Come back some time when Crocker isn't around," she snapped. "Not now."

"He loves you too," Charlotte swore. "You'll see."

Wanda looked away. She knew it was true, but the knowledge didn't help her.

* * *

><p>"Wasteland"<p>

They left the tree house carefully, Wanda carrying Cosmo in her mouth. She had to ignore the temptation to eat him, although he was almost her size. Keeping her eyes on his crown, she reminded herself that he was still her husband and nominally a fairy. They hadn't felt like themselves in whatever passed for time here, but they were supposed to be godparents. She was supposed to be better than this.

The plan, once she'd released Cosmo, was to locate the other version of themselves and see if they could help. She didn't have particularly high hopes—everyone here that they'd encountered had something wrong with them. She doubted they'd be here if they were normal. Yet she dared to hope things might change.

Their other versions were holed up in a terrible neighborhood a long walk from their tree house. Wanda had had to carry Cosmo a ways, because walking was ineffective in that form. Once they'd gotten there, she spat out green feathers. The house was ramshackle, its siding in disrepair, half the roof caved in, and the front door kicked in. The gutters had fallen down, one hanging over the entrance, and one of the steps had crumbled.

They couldn't teleport anymore, so she had to walk up to the house the old fashioned way. The front door opened and she came face to face with herself as she used to be.

"Hello," the other Wanda said. She stared at Cosmo with his broken wing and Wanda stuck as a cat.

"Ooh, we have visitors!" the other Cosmo called from within the house. It was dim and she saw stairs directly behind the door.

"It's so weird to see myself!" Cosmo trilled, grabbing the parrot. Wanda stiffened, her flight or fight kicking in.

"Aren't you going to say hi?" Cosmo asked himself. The green parrot was mute and looked to Wanda for appeal.

"He can't speak," she clarified. "We were hoping you could help us."

"Help you?" the other Wanda repeated. "Oh…I'm sorry, sweetie."

It was strange to hear her placations coming out of another person's mouth. Since they'd had to walk the entire way, she hadn't been able to carry her wand. Cosmo's wand, useless as it was, was in the tree house too. The other fairies appeared not to be carrying theirs.

"We don't have magic anymore."

"What?" Wanda hissed, irritated they'd made this long trip for nothing. "What do you mean you don't have magic? You're still in fairy form."

"We can't shift either," Cosmo clarified. "How'd my wing get broken like that?"

"You fell," she told him. "Or, rather, you were pushed off a high ledge and someone grabbed you, wrenched the wing back, and shoved you into a cage without your wand."

"Sounds painful," he commented.

"You don't have magic either, do you?" the other Wanda asked sympathetically.

"We have magic. We just can't change shape," she said. She could feel her hope burst like a balloon. "Why don't you have your powers?"

"We sacrificed them to save our godson," she replied.

"That's convenient," she growled. "Come on, Cosmo. Let's go."

"Okay!" the other Cosmo said and started to float away. The other Wanda grabbed him by the ear and yanked him back.

"She didn't mean you!" she reprimanded.

"But she _said _Cosmo!" he protested.

"I meant _my _Cosmo," she huffed. The one who couldn't talk—listening to the alternate Cosmo speak awakened old wounds. Her Cosmo hopped out of his alternate self's arms and joined her on the sidewalk. She took off at a run, determined to put the others behind her, even if it meant leaving Cosmo in the dust.

Useless. Everyone here was useless. No one could help them and she doubted anyone really wanted to. She stopped to check Cosmo's progress- he was trying to fly on a gimp wing. Relenting, she waited for him. After all, they were stuck together. She might as well stay and be miserable with him, instead of being miserable apart.

* * *

><p>"Redemption"<p>

"Maybe that's what you guys need," Timmy said, staring at the translucent barrier to what used to be their world. "Redemption."

"I don't think so, sport," Wanda replied. Cosmo had perched on his shoulder and she was oddly all right with it.

"Think about it," he said. "You're stuck here, like everybody else, and you're stuck in a wish. But what if you could get un-stuck?"

"It's not possible," she replied. "We've tried."

Timmy shook his head, not accepting it. "Maybe you haven't tried the right things."

"And what would you suggest?" she responded. The portal had reappeared yesterday, though it repelled them. Wanda was curious, but unwilling to go home in this condition, even if it were possible. She wasn't sure that it was.

"Come with me," he said.

"You have godparents," she retorted. "You have _us_."

Timmy shook his head. "If you come with me, Jorgen can fix you. And I can fix everything in my world. Don't you trust me?"

"I do, sport, but…what if things don't work out the way you think they will?"

"Then we'll do something else," he said, determined. "But I'm not leaving you guys here. You've been miserable enough."

Touched, she stared at the grass for a few seconds. Something wet slid down her cheeks and she touched a paw to her face. She was crying.

"What do you say?" he asked, oblivious.

Cosmo nodded emphatically and nipped Timmy's ear. The brown haired boy grinned, stroking Cosmo's feathers.

"Wanda?" he prompted.

"Okay," she said. She lifted her head. "We'll go."

Cosmo cheered and she started, gawking. Timmy beamed, taking them in his arms and swinging them around. The grin lasted for a few seconds before he looked around at the park.

"We need to find my way home first," he said.

Weak, as if coming from a long distance, she heard in her mind, ((It'll be okay.))

_Oh, Cosmo_. She stared at the child leading the way before her. She hoped her trust wasn't misplaced.


	5. Chapter 4- Linger

Author's Note: I started this chapter today to discover that I had bits and pieces of it already written. Of course, later, I discover that I had almost the entire chapter written elsewhere…after rewriting it. I prefer this version for the scene with Rosalie and Cosmo, although I like both versions of the scene with our Wanda, Charlotte, and Gary. Argh. You can find the other version on my LiveJournal, the link to which should be in my profile.

Chapter Four: Linger

Cosmo had switched from being held to digging his talons into a pad Wanda had conjured for Timmy's shoulder. He'd also asked for an eye patch because, hey, if you're going to walk around with a parrot on your shoulder, you might as well go all out. She drew the line at a peg leg, however, arguing that he might eventually want his leg back. Cosmo would have thought it was a good idea, but he was silent. Timmy didn't know how Wanda dealt with the constant silence—too much quiet drove him crazy after that wish.

"Where in the school first, sport?" Wanda asked, trotting alongside him.

"I know where I wouldn't go first," he said. "The library. So maybe the portal's there."

"Do you even know where the library is?' she asked, skeptical.

"Place with a lot of books, yeah, sure," he said. "Uh…gimme a second."

"Don't expect me to help," she replied. "I don't know where anything is outside of our treehouse."

Cosmo hopped on Timmy's shoulder and bopped his head forward. The boy scoffed, patting him between the eyes. In response, Cosmo nudged his fingers away. He lifted his uninjured wing and smacked him in the face.

"Thanks," he grumbled. "Like you know where it is."

"There should be a sign," Wanda groaned. "Let's see. The principal's office is that way, the janitor's room is next to us…"

"I know where everything else is," he said. "Down the other way is Crocker's room."

"Crocker?" Wanda said in alarm. Cosmo circled his good wing back, as if trying to prepare for takeoff. His broken wing, Timmy noticed, never moved.

"Uh, different Crocker," he replied. "Doesn't hate fairies. Maybe that weird baby will show up. The one who repeated his name."

"Baby?" Wanda said. "There are no babies here."

"He looked like a baby to me," Timmy said with a shrug. "Diaper and everything."

Setting off down the hall, he tried to remember where the library was. It wasn't between the cafeteria and his locker, he knew that. Crocker had once assigned them to read something, or research something. Timmy hadn't done it, but he knew he'd gone to the library anyway and played around on the computers. Since everything in this elementary school had the same layout as his school, it ought to be in the same place.

"So why can't I find it?" he groaned.

He rounded corners and wound up where he started. Grimacing, he kicked the air in frustration. Wanda frowned, stroking her chin thoughtfully.

"Maybe we haven't found it because it's hiding from us," she said.

"You're kidding me. This place is even more screwed up than I thought?" he moaned. "How the heck can a room be hiding from us?"

"It's your portal home and someone doesn't want you to find it," she replied.

"Okay…" he said, not really believing her. "But why would it be in the library?"

"You don't like to read, right?" she asked and didn't wait for a response. "If someone is trying to prevent you from coming home, they'd want to place the portals in spaces you wouldn't normally enter. That way, you'd go to the places you prefer first."

"Unless they already thought I'd do that and went to the places I didn't want to go to first to try to trick them," Timmy said.

"Uh…maybe. How did you wind up here?" she asked. "You came from the cemetery, but if the portal was there, you could have gone back that way without finding us."

"This weird girl showed up when I was walking with you guys—my version of you guys—and did this weird magic thing and I wound up here." He rubbed the back of his neck. Wanda stared, disapproving, in that way cats had and he glared.

"What?" he snapped. "It wasn't my fault. I know Cosmo and Wanda told me not to go, but how the hell was I supposed to know what would happen?"

"Uh huh."

"Don't give me that!" he snapped. Fuming, he headed for the way he thought it was. The corridor altered, turning into another wing that he knew wasn't nearby. Irritated, he closed his eyes and walked in the right direction. He knew it was the right direction and if he wound up near the entrance to the school again, he'd scream.

Fingers on the wall, he trailed them along the painted cement. He brushed against posters he pictured in his mind and past doors. The fire alarm had broken and he skipped his hands over the glass. A hinge protruded from the wall and he touched that too. Wanda's fur brushed against his leg and Cosmo's feathers touched his cheek. The latter made his nose itch.

He sneezed and rubbed his nose with his right hand. He raised his left hand to push open the library's double doors and they stuck. It didn't feel like a wall here, but more like someone had glued the doors shut. Grousing, he shoved his shoulder into door. His puny weight had no effect.

"I wish the doors would open!" he snapped.

"We don't…" she stopped. Timmy saw the wand's light glow behind his eyelids. Her next few words came in a hush and Timmy opened his eyes.

"Grant your wishes…" she breathed. Where the reference desk should be, in the center of the room, was a swirling mass of energy. Timmy's heart pounded. This was it. He walked slowly, proud of himself for figuring this out and pleased it hadn't been too difficult.

"Wait, sport, don't!" Wanda warned. He stopped, stared at her, and looked at Cosmo. His feathers were bunched and he looked worried.

"What?" he asked. "I'm going home."

"Doesn't this seem a little too easy to you?" she asked.

"Yeah, but…" he shrugged. "What's the matter with that?"

She slapped a palm to her forehead and edged toward the portal. Sticking her head closer, she stared into the abyss. Hissing, she retreated. Her whiskers were singed and smoking. Cosmo was shaking his head and Timmy gulped.

"What?" he asked.

"Not good," she said.

"_What's_ not good?" he asked.

Cosmo raised his good wing and pointed. Timmy followed his gaze, as did his wife. The bird trembled on his perch. Although muffled, his word was audible to the duo.

"_That_," Cosmo said.

* * *

><p>Rosalie wandered through the shelves and ran her fingers along the books' spines. She seemed to be looking for something in particular. Cosmo followed at a safe distance, in case she snapped again. He tried to cheer himself up by blowing balloons and popping them; Rosalie stopped what she was doing to glare at him. Drooping, he desisted.<p>

Without that, he began to ramble.

"You know, it's kind of weird that I'm here without Wanda," he said. "I've never been separated from her before, not in the almost ten thousand years we've been married. It feels kind of empty without her, you know?"

"Uh huh," Rosalie grunted, kneeling to examine the lower shelves. "It has to be here somewhere."

"I never thought I'd be without her," he continued. "I wonder where she went. I hope she's okay. I don't think I could bear it if anything happened to her. Oh, no! What if something I said was what caused her to be blasted backward? What did I say?"

"I don't know," Rosalie huffed. "It's not in this stack. It has to be here somewhere. I ordered this world deliberately."

The remark passed completely over his head. He drifted away, closer to the circulation desk. A peculiar energy swirled over it and he reached out to touch it. Yelping, he withdrew. An electric shock had passed through him and the point of contact had turned blue. He sucked on his finger, throbbing, and settled down as a cat to take a nap.

Wanda could 'nag herself to sleep' and maybe he could ramble himself to bed.

"I don't remember having a godchild recently who liked to read. They all liked to watch TV. I remember when TV didn't exist. Then people just went outside and watched lynch mobs. Those were the days…"

"I'll bet," Rosalie called. "Hey, Cosmo?"

"What?" he said, sitting up and blinking.

The silence that followed felt heavy and, in response, Cosmo jumped off the reference desk to rejoin his goddaughter. Rosalie stared at a set of encyclopedias with a determined expression on her face. She swiped one off the shelves, flicked through its pages, and put it back. This she repeated several times before locating one older than the others, with yellowing pages.

"This is it," she said with reverence. "This is the book."

"What's it do?" he asked.

"What doesn't it do?" she replied. "This should tell me where all the portals are in Dimmsdale."

"But if we close them, Wanda can't come back," he protested.

"And neither can Timmy," she said confidently. Cosmo pawed the carpet and she knelt to touch his head. A flicker of her old self showed as she stroked his fur. Then she stood abruptly, marching over to the reference desk. The strange blue energy swirled in a cloud over the computer used for checkout. Both looked at it and Rosalie smiled, kneeling to grab Cosmo's wand.

"Hey!" he protested. "That's mine!"

Looking away, he thought of Wanda shot through into the other world by his wand. It wasn't his fault, but he still felt guilty. He started rambling again and Rosalie silenced him with a hand over his mouth. Shuddering, he silenced. He looked for Wanda and didn't see her.

"This must be it," she said. "The first place Timmy Turner wouldn't go. All we have to do is seal it. Seal all the exits and they'll be trapped forever."

Raising his wand, she waved it through the air. Nothing happened. Sparks didn't even trail the wand like they would have normally. Perplexed, brow furrowed, she stabbed at the air in front of the cloud. It engulfed the wand and when she retracted it, strange energy clung to it. It looked like blue cotton candy.

"Why can't I affect it?" she huffed and glared at Cosmo. "You did something."

"No…" he protested. "I don't even know what it is. How could I have done something?"

"Who else could have done it?" she snapped.

Cosmo glanced around the library. No one came to his aid. Raising his eyebrows, he suggested, "Wanda?"

"Don't be ridiculous," she sneered. Examining the fluff at the end of the wand, she ran her fingers over it. Unlike him, her fingers didn't turn blue. (His paws, he was relieved to see, had resumed their normal green hue). Instead, they blackened. Cosmo and Rosalie exclaimed in unison, gawking. Rosalie lowered her arm in shock and he retrieved the wand without difficulty.

"It must be because I'm dead," she said, sounding shaken. "I'll have to be more careful in the future."

"I don't get it," he remarked.

"You don't understand a lot of things," she scoffed, dismissive. "All you need to know is that you don't touch the portal magic."

Cosmo nodded, eyes wide. "But you can't affect it. So how are you going to close it?"

"I'm going to wish for it," she huffed. "I wish the portal was closed!"

"Wanda's in there," he protested. "And so's Timmy. I can't leave them."

"Are you refusing to grant me a wish?" she snapped. "Are you refusing me? You can't do that. You're my godparent."

Confused, he thought of living in Timmy's fishbowl. He thought of Timmy talking to them on countless occasions. Although the memories were blurry and mostly in pieces, he recalled enough to render him bewildered. In fairy form now, he clutched his wand to his chest. Rosalie had a greedy expression on her face and a cruel smile formed.

"I'm not doing it," he said in a voice that wavered. "I'm not going to trap them."

"I can report you to Jorgen," she threatened. "I'll have him beat you."

"Jorgen doesn't do that…" he said, growing more confused. "He's blasted us and frightened us, but he's never really hurt us."

At least, he hadn't in the way she suggested. Striding closer, emanating threat, she grabbed at his wand and he retreated in midair. His heart pounded and he wondered if Rosalie's heartbeat. No, it couldn't. She had died centuries ago. Yet she was here now. Argh, thinking this much made his brain hurt. He rubbed his temples.

"Things have changed," she said. "Grant my wish or there will be consequences."

"I can't!" he moaned. "I can't leave her!"

Rosalie advanced, he retreated, and she dove at the wand. Elbowing him in the face, she tried to steal it and nearly wrenched his arm out of its socket in the process. Hand on the wand, she snarled, "I wish you could be just as miserable as me!"

The portal over the reference desk didn't disappear—it exploded in a blue cloud that obscured their vision. It brought fairy dust into his throat again and he coughed, trying to expel it. Falling to his knees, he used his magic to clear the air. Once it had, the blue portal had turned into a black cloud. He leaned against the reference desk and stared at Rosalie. Her hands were black.

"What's that smell?" he said absently.

"It's the portal disintegrating," she said with a cruel smile. "And all your chances of finding Timmy and Wanda."

"No," he said. He looked at her more closely. Her hands hadn't just turned black—they were rotting. The smell of decay filled his nostrils and he conjured an air deodorizer. Scoffing, she pushed it away and Cosmo snatched it back to press against his nose. New car smell replaced the putrefaction.

"It's you," he gasped. "You're the one who smells!"

"It's nothing," she said. Blanching, she lifted her hands to examine them. She shuddered and rubbed them against her dress. She left black streaks on the fabric.

She and Cosmo exchanged looks and she stormed out of the library as quickly as she had stormed in. Cosmo scrambled to follow her; he had to teleport to rejoin her. She walked briskly and Cosmo had to keep the air freshener in front of his face at all times. Otherwise, the smell of rotting flesh was too much.

"When you touch magic, you rot?" he asked.

"Living magic," she replied absently. "This is not what I thought would happen."

"But you're still dead, right?" he asked. He didn't know how these things worked. Rosalie narrowed her eyes and walked faster. Cosmo transformed into a hawk to match her. There was no wind and the air was cold against his wings. Soon, he had to shift into a large dog. Rosalie was shaking.

"It isn't supposed to be this way," she cried. "I shouldn't be affected by it. I prepared this so I wouldn't be!"

When he didn't know the answers, sometimes he just let people ramble.

"Everything was supposed to be perfect," she snapped. "I tried waiting in that damn hall for things to happen, but, no, Timmy had to summon Mary-Anne instead. I thought for sure this would help me escape death."

Cosmo pulled his wings closer to his body. He shivered, landing on her shoulder and digging his feet into her shoulder. Where his talons met her flesh, it stripped away. Horrified, he flew off and assumed the form of a large dog. Rosalie looked at her shoulder, sniffed, and shrugged. Strips of flesh slid off and fell onto the ground. They putrefied and turned into ash.

"Living magic," she sneered. Cosmo's heart hammered.

"You could touch us before without this happening," he protested.

"Sealing the portal must have accelerated the process," she answered. An unpleasant look crossed her face and she plopped onto the sidewalk. Cosmo settled beside her. They were down the street from the school. The swings had a sinister cast, shaded darker, and the sun had disappeared. It felt like mid-winter rather than closer to Halloween.

"Cosmo," she snapped. "You did this."

"Did what?" he asked innocently. She snarled, jumping to her feet. Where his talons had rent her flesh, black bone showed. The bile rose in his throat and he swallowed it down. He wished he had Wanda here to back him up.

"You made this happen," she accused. "You caused the magic to go wrong. You didn't want me to come back!"

"I…" Cosmo lowered his tail between his legs. "I never said I didn't want you to come back. We love all our godchildren, right?"

It took him a second to remember Wanda wasn't there.

"Bullshit," she snarled. "You love some more than others. You love Timmy more than anyone else. Why else build that room to him? Why else try to fight your way back to him? You never tried to fight for _me_."

"Jorgen hasn't taken us away from Timmy," he muttered, numb. She struck him on the side and he yelped. Where her hand contacted his body, her flesh dissolved. Bone shone on her right hand. Cosmo swallowed again, willing himself not to be sick.

"I wish I were alive and he was dead!" she howled, grabbing his wand. Hissing, she dropped it. Her hand had disappeared, leaving a stump. Cosmo backed up, grabbing the wand in between his teeth. He reminded himself that she was his current godchild. She was supposed to be his godchild. Timmy wasn't in the equation now. He didn't quite remember him, after all. Still, Wanda had gone after him. Wanda had insisted upon it. Where she went, he followed.

"I can't," he whispered. "Death wishes are against Da Rules."

Drawing a deep, staggering breath, she glared. "You're useless. Your magic was supposed to help. Why did it help the others and not me? Why can't I fix what was broken?"

"'Cuz you're dead?" he offered and she glared, raising her hand to strike him. She looked at it and shook her head. Closing her eyes, she quieted. Cosmo's heart raced and he looked at the empty street around them. He considered making a break for it.

"They're dead too," she countered. "But, no, they were preserved. Preserved in that stupid castle of yours."

"Then why didn't you try to take us down from the castle?" he asked.

"I needed the wand to escape the portrait!" she retorted. "Otherwise, I had to escape that stupid null world. And look what good it did me. I'm still dead! And now I'm dying again!"

She jumped to her feet. "If I'm going down, you're doing down with me. Fairies are supposed to be immortal, right? I guess you can just rot. Forever."

She grinned coldly. Cosmo turned tail and ran. It wasn't long before Rosalie was in pursuit.

* * *

><p>Wanda stumbled from the gravestones in a daze. Holding her hands out in front of her, she prayed she didn't run into anything. Her wand's lit tip provided too little light to see. Her magical senses had dulled and she had no idea who might be around. Armed with her wand, she advanced a few feet and swept her wand around. She walked a few paces before stumbling into the next gravestone.<p>

Groaning, she tried to disappear and reappear. She had no idea whether it worked, because the light remained the same and the temperature hadn't changed. Walking a few feet, she held her wand out. It touched something and she prodded it.

"Watch where you're pointing that thing," a male complained. It sounded like Gary. Wanda blinked.

"Gary?" she asked.

"Great, a new recruit," he muttered. "Now I have to do the whole routine all over again. I just did it for Tim-Tim."

"Timmy?" Wanda repeated. "Where is he? Where am I?"

"You don't know where you are?" he asked. "Oh. Right. The eyes. Why does everyone here have to have somethin' wrong with them?"

"What are you doing here? And where's Timmy?"

"You're the first person to ask after him," Gary mused. "Stop walking. You're going to hurt yourself."

She had spun around in a circle and halted. Cactus burrs brushed against her skin. Strangely, the cactus provided no scent and her fairy-heightened senses didn't find anything either. Shivering, she tried to look at Gary. She didn't have practice searching for voices in the dark- even when the lights were out, she usually could see outlines.

"An' I thought you knew where 'here' is. You're lookin' for Timmy, aren't you?" he asked.

Great. It seemed like Gary was as helpful here as he'd been before. Groaning, she tucked her wand away before she hurt herself. Staring ahead of her, she hoped she managed to look at him without giving the impression she had a glazed look on her face.

"You found the nearest Timmy shaped object," he continued.

"You mean his imaginary friend?" she asked.

"Sorta," he hedged. "Things aren't that clear-cut."

"What do you mean?" she asked. "You're Gary, Timmy's imaginary friend, from the wish."

"I could tell you, but that'd eat up another chapter of backstory. Look, you're not gonna find Timmy bumpin' around in the dark."

Since she was in literal and figurative darkness, she didn't appreciate it. Narrowing her eyes, she put her hands on her hips. She tried to look intimidating, which was hard when you were child size and blind.

"Then how am I supposed to find him?" she retorted.

"I sent him after you an' Cos," Gary said and then amended his statement. "You an' Cos from another dimension."

Wanda tried not to be impatient. She reminded herself that she was at Gary's mercy and until she figured out how to remedy the situation, she'd continue to be. She also reminded herself this was Timmy's fault, since he'd created the whole mess. Timmy usually instigated things and she calmed down. She drew a short breath.

"They're at the tree house...an' that doesn't help you..." Muttering, Gary moved away. Wanda started to follow and walked into the cactus. Cursing, she withdrew and backed up into someone.

"Sorry!" This was a girl's voice this time, not as nearly high pitched as Tootie but sounding similar. Perplexed, Wanda turned around and the girl put her hands on Wanda's shoulders to steady her. It was odd, but she wasn't floating like normal. Instead, she was standing and moving like a normal human.

"Gary, how could you be so mean to a version of Wanda?" the girl protested.

"She wanted to know," he scoffed. "S'not my fault she didn't ask the right questions."

"You didn't give her a chance," she reprimanded. With a pause, she added, "Who's Timmy?"

Gary groaned. "You forgot already, Toot-Toot?" he asked.

"_Don't call me that_!" she snapped. "I'm Charlotte."

"Tootie," Wanda groaned, unconsciously moving backward. Charlotte seized her and held her, as if she might run off at any minute. Unhappy, she pushed her off and knocked into a chair.

"Bein' blind must suck," Gary commented.

"No kidding," Wanda grumbled.

"Seriously, though, who's Timmy?" Charlotte asked.

"You just met him," Gary said and she could hear him roll his eyes. "Why do I gotta be the one who remembers everythin' around here?"

"Wait, that kid with the silly pink hat?"

"That's him," Wanda and Gary said in unison, Gary with resignation, Wanda with excitement.

"Where's the tree house?" Wanda asked. "Can I poof there?"

"Dunno," he replied. "Nobody's ever tried before."

"Wish my godparents had come with me..." Charlotte muttered. She pulled the chair out that Wanda had walked into and sat down. Bemused, Wanda moved aside and stared ahead. She felt vulnerable and uneasy, much as she normally did in Crocker's company.

"He might not even be there," Gary added. "Since someone here decided to stop visitin' a while back."

"Don't get mad at me," she retorted. "It's not my fault! Stupid Crocker put me in a headlock and threatened me. He doesn't like anyone around his precious godparents. They're not even his anymore. What a jerk."

This produced a rather confused image of an adult Crocker putting a child in a headlock. She searched the voices for an explanation.

"Anyway," Gary said loudly, clearing his throat. "You won't find him around here."

"You never told me where 'here' is," she pointed out, balling her fists. "For all I know I poofed into Kansas."

"Kansas has more people," Gary scoffed.

"We have plenty of people," Charlotte objected. "They're just not...completely here."

"Sort of like you aren't," Gary said and hissed. "Anyone ever tell you that you got a nasty punch?"

"Where's Timmy?" she repeated.

"He's off with Cosmo and Wanda," Charlotte said. "Another version, that is. Why don't you come with me and we'll go look for him?"

"You're volunteerin'?" Gary asked, dubious. "Why? What's in it for you?"

"I happen to like all versions of Cosmo and Wanda," she replied brightly.

"Oh yeah?" he challenged. "Then why don't you ever visit the others?"

"Because Veronica doesn't like traveling," she replied.

"Veronica's not real!" he snapped.

"Not real like you're not real?" she shot back.

"Not real like she's made up!" he replied. "Not real like she's in your head!"

"Like your version of your creator?" she snarled.

"Like she never existed at all!" he snapped. "I don't know why you keep talkin' to her when she's not there! There's nobody there! Nobody cares about you."

"She is too real!" she cried. "You can't see her because you're not magical! Wanda can see her!"

"That Wan?" Gary scoffed. "That Wan can't see her hand in front of her face."

"Not that Wanda!" Charlotte huffed, as though it should have been obvious. "Wanda the cat."

"They've been stuck as a cat an' parrot for years. You don't think maybe they've got a few screws loose?" he snapped. Wanda winced as she heard flesh-smacking flesh again. Gary growled, backing up. She imagined him throwing his hands up.

"Hittin' people, not cool. Fine. You wanna show her around? S'not my problem. I don't care what you do. You leave my creator out of it."

"We're going," Charlotte said smugly. She scooped Wanda up and held her against her chest. Since they were of a height, it was impractical. She walked a few steps, grumbled, and released her in favor of holding her hand. Wanda took it, sensing something to Charlotte's other side. Confused, she turned her head to try and see it. Everything was a shade of grey.

"What did you mean about his creator? What happened to his version of Timmy?" Wanda asked in a hush as they hastened away.

"Timmy? Timmy's his creator?" Charlotte inquired.

"Another Timmy is, but yes," she replied. They walked along without making a sound. Wanda could barely hear herself breathe. She pressed her free hand to her chest to ensure it rose and fell.

"He never mentions him by name," she replied. "That's why I was curious."

Gary seemed to think the backstory would take too long to give her everything. He'd probably not told Charlotte much either. She swallowed her questions about that. Instead, she followed Charlotte in silence. The absence of everything, including electric hums, put her nerves on edge.

"You'd like them," she commented after a few minutes of walking.

"Like who, sweetie?" she asked.

"The other Cosmo and Wanda," she answered. "Cosmo doesn't talk, but you can tell he still cares about his wife. And even though they're not that happy, I think they could be. If you know, that dick Crocker left them alone."

"Language," Wanda said absently.

"I miss my godparents," she burst out. "They didn't come with me. Vicky did. Stupid Vicky."

She propelled herself down the street and dragged Wanda along. Drawing to a stop, she jerked her off her feet. Wanda struggled to right herself and Charlotte hummed. She bounced on the balls of her heels.

"We have to wait for traffic to stop," she intoned.

"I don't hear anything," she commented.

"That's because you can't see them. Or hear them. But they should be here. Any second now."

Wanda scanned the area, though everything looked the same. Squeezing her hand, Charlotte hopped up and down. "The light will change soon."

"Where are we going?" Wanda asked.

"To the tree house, of course," she replied. "We'll wait for them to come back, if they've left. If they haven't, we'll drop in."

"Maybe we should try to figure out where they went instead, hun," she replied.

"They could have gone anywhere," she protested. "Besides, this will be much more fun. Careful, a car's coming!"

"I don't hear anything," she protested.

"You don't hear it," she huffed. "You know it's there and that's all. They're shadow cars. Impressions of the cars from the real worlds we're linked to."

"Okay…" she said, deciding to take the child's word for it.

"Now we cross," she announced, hauling Wanda after her. "We're off to see the Wizard, the wonderful Wizard of Oz!"

This was going to be a long trip.


	6. Chapter 5-Faithless

Chapter Five: Faithless

"Here we are," Charlotte announced after an entirely too long trip through unknown territory. "They don't appear to be home. Why don't we just wait?"

Wanda grimaced and raised her wand to see if she could summon them back. The wand flared and died. She had no idea if it had worked or not, but guessing by the prolonged silence, she would say no. She pocketed her wand and turned when she heard movement. Charlotte tensed, still holding her hand, and backed up so Wanda was pressed against the tree and behind her.

"I knew if I waited here long enough, something would happen," a younger Crocker called.

"She's not yours," Charlotte said, voice trembling. "We're waiting for Timmy to come back."

"What's wrong with her?" he asked. Wanda sensed someone getting closer and kneeling to her height. She raised her wand.

"Maybe I'll settle for this one until mine return," Crocker said.

"You'd better not!" Charlotte warned, shrill. "She's my responsibility."

"Your responsibility?" Crocker repeated. "You're barely responsible for that thing you call a friend. Let me take her off your hands."

"No!" she cried and hugged Wanda. "She's mine!"

Wanda grimaced. She remembered the last time two children had fought over her and Cosmo. They'd sailed through the air and wound up being a dog's chew toy. She still recalled the bite marks on her butt.

Crocker shoved Charlotte and snatched Wanda. Huffing, Wanda smacked the boy in the face with her wand and blasted him away. Defiant, she glared in Crocker's direction. The wand remained hot from the blast and she twirled it on her fingers.

"Didn't your mother ever teach you manners?" she asked.

"No, because my mother was never home," he countered. "Huh. You still have magic."

"You can defend yourself!" Charlotte cheered.

Yes, she could, overlooking the fact that she couldn't see what she was defending herself against. She shifted into a creature with better sensory perceptions. Flapping her wings, she turned into a bat. She fluttered her way up and sent a beacon to determine where the nearest structure was—in this case, the tree house. . Crocker snarled and ascended the tree house steps in pursuit.

She flung herself at the entrance and bounced off. Evidently, the alternate Cosmo and Wanda kept it locked when they weren't home. She'd hit some sort of steel barrier, complete with a magical shield. Did they take it down and put it back up every time they left? Otherwise, she was positive it should have recognized her.

Crocker caught her and she squirmed, turning into a ferret. The ferret fell through his arms and crashed into the ground. Breathless, she rolled away and into Charlotte. Crocker descended the steps and cursed.

"I should have warned you," the girl said. "The tree house is only open when they're home."

"That would have been helpful," she grumbled.

"Sorry," she whispered.

Crocker snarled and Wanda shifted into a bird and then a bat again. There was no point in attaining flight if she couldn't detect her surroundings. Using sonar, she propelled herself to the tree house's roof. Her heart pounded. The tree house was too tall to climb and was thus safe from Crocker's intrusion, but she'd be trapped.

"She wasn't worth it anyway," Crocker declared.

"Are you okay up there? Veronica's worried!" Charlotte asked.

"Fine, hun," Wanda said. Using the sonar again, she determined the roof's height and dimensions. She could relax and turn into something else, something larger, but then she'd lose the bat's advantages. Clinging to a tile with her claws, she flattened herself out. She could barely hear herself breathing.

"You're not going to stand around and wait, are you?" Crocker snapped.

"I have a duty," she informed him. "Gary wants me to find Timmy."

"Timmy?" Crocker repeated. "That loser with the pink hat?"

"Yeah," she replied. "He went off with Cosmo and Wanda."

"_What_?" Crocker snarled. "They left the tree house? Without informing me?"

"They're not your godparents anymore," she reminded him. "They haven't been since the wish that stranded them here."

"They belong to me!" he groaned. "I'm solely responsible for their misery!"

"Why do you care what happens to them?" she scoffed. Wanda closed her eyes to focus on what she could perceive. Beyond the posturing children, she distinguished nothing. The roof creaked and within the tree house, magic stirred. It reminded her of her own magic, albeit a different strain. Perhaps she could coax it into helping her.

"The other Crocker is a lot nicer," Charlotte added.

"He doesn't blame them for what happened like I do," he snapped.

"It wasn't their fault."

"You don't know what happened!"

"I know Cosmo and Wanda well enough to say that they'd never deliberately hurt someone!"

"You don't know Cosmo," he accused. "You've never spoken to him."

"He can talk," she hedged. "Sort of."

Crocker sneered. "It's their fault. They were always talking about how happy they were together and how much we were a family, but when I needed them most they vanished."

"That doesn't sound like them," Charlotte said.

"Everyone was called back to Fairy World. I almost died," he said.

Wanda turned over on the roof and fiddled with her wand. She couldn't teleport herself or others though the wand worked in all other capacities. She wanted to use her sonar to distinguish sound emissions, but beyond the tree house, she detected nothing. In the far distance there might be other people, perhaps fellow fairies, but they were too far away.

She could try moving toward them, regardless, and hope for the best. Readying herself, she took off from the tree house. The lack of wind stymied her and she crashed again. Frustrated, she shifted into a cat, to climb up. Crocker seized her by the throat.

"Let go of her!" Charlotte cried and shoved Crocker. Wanda bounced backward and gasped, kicking out.

"Turner wants my godparents? Then I'll offer him a trade," he said. "He can have this one as long as he lets me keep mine."

"They aren't yours!" she protested. Wanda struggled and Crocker tightened his grip. Breathing became painful and she blasted him in the stomach with her wand. Crocker fell over and she scampered away. She darted for cover and crashed into the tree house.

"You're not going to get very far," he taunted.

Wanda hissed, shifted into a bat again, and propelled herself with her wand to the tree house roof. She might not be able to fly very far but she could still stay out of Crocker's grip. She produced a small wind, suitably only for gliding. It wasn't what she wanted, but she supposed it would do in a pinch.

She made it off the tree house and a few feet further before crashing into another tree. Groaning, she collided with a branch and plummeted until she hit another one. She shifted into a monkey to grip it. Her heart raced and she hissed, wishing she could find someone to show her the way.

"I can wait all day," Crocker called.

"Knock it off!" Charlotte whined.

"What are you going to do?" he taunted. "Whine me to death?"

"Whatever you think Cosmo and Wanda did to you, they didn't do it! You don't have to keep punishing them!" she cried.

"I'm not punishing them. I'm reminding them that they left me when I needed them."

"They didn't mean to!"

Wanda cleared her throat and felt their gazes upon her. Dangling by her tail, she pulled herself upright and waited until they had both fallen silent. She stuffed her wand in the void where she could retrieve it later—a sort of magical pocket that existed in every universe.

"I can't speak for my counterpart, but I know that I would never leave a child in need. Whatever the reason you think your godparents abandoned you, know that they didn't do it to hurt you. They had no other choice. We love our godchildren like our own—" her breath caught, thinking of the child she'd never be able to have—"and protect and raise them as best we can.

"I don't know the specifics of what happened, but I'm sure, beyond whatever you're putting them through, they regret it. Try talking to them instead of hurting them. I'm sure they'd tell you the same thing."

Crocker scoffed. "They said the same thing. But I don't believe them. If they love me so much, why did Jorgen have to try to take them away?"

He whined.

"Oh, sweetie," Wanda murmured. "Jorgen could have a lot of reasons and many of them might not have to do with you. He always recalls us if he's afraid we'll be exposed."

"You weren't about to be exposed," he replied, sullen.

"Are you sure about that, hun?" she replied. "Think back on what happened. What made us go away?"

"I was at a school play," he said. "You hadn't shown up for a while. And you kept disappearing on me. Jorgen kept calling you away."

"Did we tell you why?" she replied.

"Something to do with…something. I wasn't paying much attention," he said. "You kept apologizing…but…while you were gone, Ricky got worse and worse."

"What did he do?" she murmured. She had forgotten Charlotte was there and that she wasn't technically Crocker's godmother anymore, nor had she been this particular Crocker's godmother. She focused on him the best she could and gave her undivided attention.

"You know…stuff…"

"Like what?" Charlotte said derisively.

"You should have been there. That's all!" he sniffed.

"Just because they missed helping you doesn't mean you need to punish them, especially when it wasn't their fault," she reprimanded. "They never meant to hurt you."

"Then why were they so happy about it?" he retorted.

"Sweetie, you may have misinterpreted that-"

He cut her off and she felt the heat of his glare. Shifting on the branch, she tried to face him. It was difficult to tell whether they were making eye contact.

"No, I didn't! I know what happened! They came back and they were acting all lovey-dovey, ignoring me!" he snapped.

Wanda frowned. "Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure! Now they can never do that again because they'll never be the same species!" he snapped.

"I need you to think long and hard about what happened," she replied. "Were we acting 'lovey-dovey'? Or were we clinging to each other? Maybe we were scared and you didn't notice because you were so angry."

Crocker didn't reply. She tilted her head toward him and he huffed, bristling.

"Not everything in Fairy World is rainbows and happiness. Sometimes, we have to protect ourselves against frightening things."

"Like what?" he remarked. Although he was sullen, she could tell he was listening.

"Like other creatures that might want to hurt us or against exposure. Things have been peaceful in Fairy World for a while, but they aren't always that way."

She still remembered the goblin wars. Shuddering, she clung to the tree. Goblins were disgusting creatures. They slobbered over everything, including their gear. She didn't know how they aimed, with all that saliva everywhere.

"You should have told me," he remarked.

"I'm sure we tried, hun. But sometimes kids get all wrapped up in what's going on with them and don't notice anything else."

"It wasn't my fault!" he retorted.

"I didn't say that it was," she answered.

"I'll talk to them," he grumbled. "But they're not going to help."

"You'd be surprised," she said lightly. "I can be there, if you want."

"That won't be necessary," he said and she heard a dangerous note in his voice. A wand blast caught her off guard and she scrambled, pawing at thin air before falling back to the ground. Bars closed around her and, beneath the bars, a butterfly net sprang up. Her chest constricted and she screeched, swinging around in her new prison.

"Turner will come to me once he sees that I have you," he said. "And to make sure you don't escape…the butterfly net."

"You have Cosmo's wand!" Charlotte cried and she heard a thud. There followed a frantic scrambling, with yelps and arguing. Panting, Charlotte backed into the cage.

"Stay away from her. I'm warning you," she threatened.

"You can't get her out. Only I have the key."

"I can blast it!" she cried.

"And then what? You'll have to come back here sometime. You can't stay away forever. And when you come back, I'll be here. I'm always here."

Wanda shuddered. This version of Crocker was, if anything, creepier than theirs. She fingered the butterfly net and it mildly electrocuted her. Since she assumed the butterfly net obscured their view, she flipped it off and then flopped onto the cage's bottom. She'd gone to rescue Timmy and now she was the one who needed rescuing.

"I'm not going anywhere, then," Charlotte huffed. "But neither are you."

"I wouldn't dream of it," he replied smugly.

"Then I guess we're both staying here!"

"Fine."

"Fine!"

"All right."

"All right!"

"Children…" Wanda groaned and someone punched the cage. She flinched.

"It's your fault I didn't grow up," Crocker snapped, churlish. "I'll make sure your godchild doesn't either. You'll be trapped with him forever."

She could almost hear Cosmo say, "But look on the bright side. All the grey sky you want! And no pesky sun to ruin it!"

…

Timmy was not in the best mood. After having his first hope squashed, he couldn't join in Wanda's exuberance that Cosmo had spoken. He stomped away from the library, past Crocker's empty classroom, past the strange baby that kept floating after them, and out the front doors. He flung himself dramatically on the steps and sighed, trying to think of where he wouldn't want to go besides school and the library. He was out of ideas.

"Poof, poof!" the baby cried and Timmy ignored him.

"Say something else," Wanda begged, leaning against Timmy and rubbing her tail against his leg. Cosmo shook his head on Timmy's shoulder and Timmy looked around. Cosmo's beak showed minute cracks. The cracks weren't deep enough for him to open it, but sound could escape.

"Poof, poof!" the baby insisted, floating in front of Timmy's face. He shoved him away.

"Can't you discuss your miracle elsewhere?" Timmy asked. "I'm trying to think of something."

"Sorry, sport," she replied. "But this is a big deal."

"We went to the library. Where else wouldn't I go? Vicky's house?" he asked, talking to himself. In the background, Wanda cajoled Cosmo and the baby, undeterred, floated into his vision. Timmy glared, eyes narrowing.

"What?" he snapped.

The baby produced a small scrap of paper that unfolded into a map of Dimmsdale. Timmy stared, uncomprehending, and the baby poked with his rattle wand. Several spots lit up. Timmy, who had no experience reading a map, had no idea what he was looking at. The baby was patient and prodded his rattle along several roads. Timmy still had no idea.

"What?" he asked.

The baby repeated the gesture, this time starting at a house located on Timmy's street and following it down the road. Timmy tracked it and his jaw dropped open.

"Oh," he said. "These are all the places you think the portals are."

Poof nodded emphatically (Timmy hoped his name was "Poof"—he was getting tired of referring to him as 'the baby'). Timmy took a closer look at the map and tasted fairy dust on his tongue. Spitting it out, he looked up. The baby had disappeared in a purple cloud. Typical. At least he'd helped. Smiling, he stared at the street names and locations to figure out where they were and where he was. The map would be very helpful.

"Hey, guys!" he called. "Look at this!"

"It's a map of Dimmsdale," Wanda said, holding it down with a paw.

"That's one helpful baby," he remarked.

"What baby?" she asked.

"Dude, he was right here. How could you have missed him?"

Cosmo shrugged. Wanda turned around, tail twitching, and narrowed her eyes. "Maybe we can't see him."

"Whatever," he said, dismissing this. "There are too many weird things around here to think about that. Look, it says there's another portal at Vicky's house."

"Vicky?" Wanda repeated. "Why does that name sound so familiar?"

"You guys know her?" he said and grimaced. "The fire breathing dragon in a pair of black jeans?"

"We don't know about that," she replied. "But isn't that Charlotte's older sister?"

Cosmo nodded and made a noise that sounded like 'uh huh'. Excited, Wanda jumped onto the map and scratched it. Chagrined, she hopped back off and Timmy smoothed the map out. Her claws had torn a hole through Vicky's house. He wished it could have torn a hole through Vicky instead.

"You mean Tootie," Timmy said.

"She doesn't answer to that," she replied. "We might as well head over there and hope the portal isn't closed."

Nodding, Timmy folded the map and stowed it in his pocket. Cosmo hopped back onto his shoulder and dug his talons into the shoulder pad. Wanda walked alongside him and they set off along the sidewalk. Timmy bypassed the cracks, far more numerous here than in his world. Avoiding them required dexterity he didn't possess and he tripped over his feet. He squashed Wanda underfoot and she hissed, freeing herself. As he stood up again, she cleaned her fur.

"There aren't any anti-fairies here, are there?" he asked.

"Not that we know of," she answered. She followed his gaze to the sidewalk. "That's odd. It shouldn't be cracking. There's no weather to cause the pavement to expand and then contract."

Timmy shrugged, bobbing Cosmo up and down against his head. Although wary of summoning anti-fairies, he decided it was probably safe to step on a couple of cracks. Wanda followed, not as closely as before, probably so he didn't stumble over her. She picked her way nimbly, with a grace Timmy envied. Cosmo fluttered his good wing against Timmy's cheek.

"Dude, what?" he asked.

Cosmo pointed ahead, where a strange shimmer lit up the sky. Before, it had been purely grey. Now an orange streak ebbed and flowed. If he blinked, he would have missed it. Uneasy, he looked at Wanda. Both fairies appeared entranced by the change.

"That has to happen once in a while, right?" he asked.

"No," she said. She looked at him. "Having so many open portals leading into your world has caused magic to flow back into this one."

"But you already have magic," he pointed out.

"Live magic," she clarified. "Your world is reviving this one."

"I don't understand," he said.

"Neither do we," she said. "Except it's causing things to change. The one standard in this world is that nothing changes and nothing progresses. There's no hope."

"And now there is?"

She shot him a sidelong look. "You tell me, sport."

Heart accelerating, he skipped along the pavement and toward Vicky's house. He couldn't believe he was actually running to Vicky's house. Wanda kept pace and Cosmo made an odd squawking noise. If Timmy concentrated, he thought he could feel a breeze against his cheeks.

They pelted down the street and around the corner. Timmy heard something, faint but unmistakable. It sounded like cars, although there were none around. Frowning, Wanda looked both ways before they crossed. Timmy did the same, feeling foolish but wondering where the sound had come from. It vanished after a few seconds.

It was a long walk back to his neighborhood from school. Running tired him and they resumed walking. Wanda was silent, alert, and Cosmo dug his talons in and flapped his good wing as if he could take off at any moment. Timmy touched his bad wing and the fairy stopped, staring at him. Wanda halted too.

"Don't touch that," she hissed.

"Why didn't you try splinting it?" he asked. "Or breaking it again so it'll heal?"

"Don't touch his wing," she warned.

"I want to help," he replied.

"Don't touch it," she repeated. "I mean it."

"I don't see what the big deal is," he answered.

"He's in constant pain from that wing," she snapped. "He doesn't need you making it worse."

"If you break it again, it'll heal cleanly and stop hurting," he argued. Wanda jumped onto his shoulder and hissed in his face.

"I've warned you before. I won't tell you again. Don't touch that wing."

"I'm your godson in another universe. I know what I'm doing."

"I highly doubt that," she remarked, eyes narrowing. Cosmo fluttered his good wing and buffeted Timmy in the face. Timmy jerked his head and shoved Wanda off, but she dug in with her claws.

"We won't help you if you keep doing this," she warned.

"I'm trying to help _you_," he said. "Fine. I won't touch Cosmo's stupid wing. Happy?"

"Yes," she declared. "Ecstatic."

She jumped off his shirt and Timmy rubbed the claw marks she'd left underneath his shirt. Irritated, he bounced Cosmo on his shoulder. The green bird latched on tighter and Timmy grimaced. Wanda was giving him the evil eye. Damn it, these godparents were a lot more annoying than his. Wanda was so protective over Cosmo.

"I wasn't going to do anything anyway," he grumbled.

"So you say," she sniffed. "I wouldn't trust anyone to touch that wing."

"Not even you?" he countered. Wanda frowned and, if a cat could appear sad, she did. Eyes downcast, her whiskers trembled.

"Especially not me," she murmured.

"You never told me how he broke it in the first place," he said.

"It's not important," she shot back.

"You gotta trust me a little," he said. "I'm not bad a kid. I've had you guys for two years now."

Wanda frowned, contemplative, but didn't comment. Cosmo shuffled and moved his bad wing. The exercise caused him to squeak, although the wing hadn't budged very far. Wanda, thankfully, was too busy thinking or maybe remembering to notice. If Timmy had more time to dedicate to the subject, or a longer attention span, or perhaps an interest in healing things, he'd wonder. But he didn't. He let it go, along with everything else strange in this universe.

Vicky's house was dark, even for her. The shingles had turned black and the rotting hulk in the driveway couldn't rightfully be called a car. The four wheels protruded, causing the frame to sag onto the broken pavement, and the front and back windshields were smashed to pieces. A solitary windshield wiper blade stuck up, along with rusted antennae on the roof. The doors had warped, dented with the handles broken off. The trunk was stuck open and the gas tank's cap was missing. The four tires looked worn to the point of falling off and there was a darker shadow underneath the car than the feeble light could account for.

The house, too, was in disrepair. Windows were broken, shingles dangled down, and the front door was caved in. It hung on one hinge. The front steps were missing completely. He'd have to jump to catch the door.

Uneasy, he looked around. Plants consumed the gutters and choked any potential rainfall to a standstill. Ivy encircled what would have been Tootie's room and poisonous berries, poison ivy, and other plants Timmy couldn't name blocked Vicky's room from view. Like everywhere else, the place was utterly silent. Unlike everywhere else, this emanated death.

Timmy halted in the driveway and Wanda's tail brushed against his leg. Cosmo shuddered.

"Sport, I don't like the look of this place," she commented.

Cosmo bobbed his head in agreement.

"That's the point, isn't it?" he said. "We're not supposed to. Come on."

He started walking a few steps to discover Wanda wasn't following him. The pink cat stared at the broken windows and black shingles with obvious misgivings. The paint matched everything else in this world—grey with a hint of colorlessness. It was peeling, completely gone against the drainage pipes.

"Come _on_," he said. "You guys are fairies. You've been in way worse situations than this."

"Not recently…" she murmured but hastened after him. She met Cosmo's gaze and nodded. The glum parrot nodded back.

Shrugging off their worry, despite his unease, he hopped up onto the top step. The screen door had disappeared, leaving only trace wires in front of the door. Timmy looked toward the doorbell, but only wires stuck out. He poked them experimentally and winced, sucking on his finger.

"Ow!" he yelped. "That was stupid."

Raising his hand, he knocked at the door. "Anyone here? Hello?"

"No one here but us ghosts," Wanda muttered. Timmy stared and she shrugged, tail twitching. She leaned into him and shivered.

"Hello?" he called again and knocked extra hard. Knuckles bruised, he decided no one was going to answer and tried the knob. The door stuck. Grunting, Timmy shoved his shoulder into it. Unfortunately, that was the shoulder with Cosmo perched and Cosmo smacked him in the face with his good wing.

"Hey!" Cosmo cried, muffled.

"Sorry," he muttered. "Forgot."

"Allow me," Wanda said and waved her wand. The door collapsed onto the floor. Dust flew up and Timmy coughed, covering his face. Eyes watering, he held his arm in front of his face. The two fairies beside him coughed too, Cosmo choking without the ability to exhale in deep bursts.

"Hello, _twerp_," Vicky crooned. "So glad you could make it."

"Is it too late now to find somewhere else?" Timmy gasped.

"Oh, yes," Vicky said and the door sprang back up as if by magic. The dust cleared and Timmy staggered. Above the fire breathing dragon with a pair of black jeans' head was a crown. Her wings fluttered on her back.

"No way!" he cried. "There's no way!"

"No way what, twerp?" Vicky called. "That I'm part fairy? That I can totally kick your ass and there's nowhere to run?"

"How do you have magic?" he cried.

"Juandissimo made a couple mistakes," she said and grinned. The grin faded. "Too bad he thought Tootie was a good idea."

"Guys?" he said. Wanda growled, fur bristling, and stood defensively in front of Timmy. Cosmo scraped his claws like he was going to sharpen them on the pad before launching himself at Vicky.

"In other universes, maybe. Not in ours," was her answer.

"Stupid bitch got us both killed 'trying to save everyone'," she mimicked. "But I got her good. Her and her stupid friend Veronica."

The grin returned. "I'll get you too, twerp. I'll get you and your pretty kitty and parrot too."

…

Cosmo pelted around one corner and then another. He lost track of how fast he ran or how far. Weeds appeared to trip him and he went sprawling, skidding several feet before crashing into a doghouse. His belly was sore and he howled, expecting Wanda to come heal him. Wanda didn't come.

Bemused, he straightened up and flung himself into the doghouse. He huddled in the wooden enclosure and healed himself.

"Where is that stupid dog?" Rosalie ranted. "I heard him just a second ago."

Cosmo's heart pounded and he willed himself invisible. It was too dark in the doghouse to see if he'd actually done it and when Rosalie ducked to peer in there, he could have sworn their eyes met. Holding his breath, he stared at her. She kicked the doghouse in frustration and her shoe disintegrated, along with part of her foot.

Cursing, she stomped off. Cosmo watched her go and his nose tickled. The decaying part of her foot was close to him and he needed to sneeze. He held his breath a few seconds longer and then sneezed, blowing the doghouse off.

"I should have known!" she snapped and then stared. "Where are you?"

"Ha, you can't find me!" he cheered and she flung herself at his neck. Cosmo sneezed again. Man, he was allergic to fairy dust and rotting godchild. He couldn't stop sneezing and everywhere he sneezed, flowers grew.

"You're coming with me, invisible or not!" she cried.

She dragged him a few feet and he bounded past her. Everything blurred around him as he dashed out of the yard, onto the street, and in front of several cars. He didn't expect them to stop for him, which was good because they couldn't see him. Instead, they ran right over him.

As far as plans went, this wasn't his best work. Then again, Wanda was the brain of the operation. He whined, collapsed on the other side of the road, and used his wand to re-inflate himself. The skid marks wouldn't be pretty, if he could see them. He twisted his neck to stare at himself and couldn't understand why he didn't see anything.

"Where did I go?" he asked.

"You're asking _me_?" Rosalie cried from across the street.

"Hey, this wasn't a bad idea after all!" he praised himself and set off at a run through the town. Rosalie dashed across the street after him and he concentrated on not speaking. That wasn't too difficult, since he had completely lost track of what he wanted to say. The monkey was dancing in his head again.

He bolted up the steps, into the house, and up to Timmy's bedroom. He might have run through the door, come to think of it. He wasn't sure if there was a Cosmo sized gap in the door and he didn't care. Instead, he changed himself into a fish and poofed into the fish bowl. It wasn't there. He careened into the floor and gasped.

Timmy's room wasn't Timmy's room. It was an expensive entertainment room, complete with a giant widescreen TV and pinball machine. Music blared through multiple speakers and disco lights blinded him. Whining, Cosmo shifted into a fly and crawled up the wall. His heart pounded.

"Did you hear something?" Timmy's mother called.

"Just the sound of my counting my money!" Timmy's father replied.

"Safe…for now," he breathed. He shook his head. "Wait, safe from what?"

"COSMO!" Jorgen thundered and Cosmo shuddered.

"Oh, right. That." A giant fist seized him and brought him back to Fairy World's headquarters on Earth…that Wanda said shouldn't exist. He still couldn't remember why that was a bad thing, but he guessed he'd find out soon enough.


	7. Interlude 2

A/N: Oh, hey, look, here are the vignettes I promised you guys…in 2013.

"Times Are A'Changin'"

It was chilly in the null world. Anyone else might not have noticed the temperature changing, but inhabitants of it recognized the change. Wanda shivered, curling up closer to Cosmo. They'd had to conjure up a fire and overrode Timmy's complaints about it not being necessary. The boy had muttered and moved as far from it as he could go without falling out of the tree house.

None of them slept, anyway. Wanda found herself staring up at the ceiling. Her fur twitched and she thought of leaving this place. Timmy had promised them an escape. Hard as it might be, she couldn't imagine leaving. Her life had ended when she came here. She didn't know if she was ready to relive it.

((Of course you can,)) Cosmo said and Wanda jumped, flying into the flames, catching fire, and howling before she put herself out. Timmy yelped, turning over from his sleeping bag to glare at them.

"Keep it down!" he snapped. "Some people are trying to sleep."

"He spoke...mind to mind..." Wanda trembled.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Timmy declared, "and I don't care. Go to sleep."

Wanda swallowed her exasperation and her urge to swat at him. She curled into a ball, licked herself, and glared at the culprit. Cosmo looked so innocent, sitting there in front of her like he hadn't just inadvertently set his wife on fire. It made her want to chuck him into the flames for doing that.

((Since _when_ can you speak mind to mind with me?)) she demanded.

((Uh, since now? And always?)) he replied and blinked at her. In a cat, it might've been an indication of trust. In a parrot, it was a little creepy.

((We haven't spoken mind to mind since...)) She swallowed. Crocker's wish had included blocking telepathy though not empathy. Careful now, she prowled around her mate. Cosmo whistled and she lunged, knocking him to the floor. Timmy groused, Wanda rolled her eyes, and she glared at Cosmo.

((Would you stop acting like it's no big deal?)) she demanded.

Cosmo conjured up party streamers and balloons. He sprang to his feet and danced. Wanda groaned. It'd been a long time since Cosmo had felt spirited enough to dance around and she wished she could say she wanted to join in.

"Dude, guys. Just knock it off," Timmy complained. "I'm tired."

"No, you're not," Wanda refuted. "It's impossible to get tired here."

"You're not a ten-year-old boy who's been running around like crazy," he shot back.

"No, I've already reached puberty," Cosmo agreed and Timmy glared. Wanda snorted. Though Cosmo's words remained muffled, they were audible. His thoughts, however, were crystal clear. Remembering his mind touching hers left her at a loss.

"Just do whatever the heck you were going to do quietly," he snapped and curled into a ball with his back to them. Wanda huffed and Cosmo dispelled the party favors. Suddenly, she was too tense to pretend fatigue. She sprang to her paws and leapt for the tree house door. Cosmo followed at her heels though his broken wing hampered quick movement.

((Wanda,)) he said warningly. ((You don't know what's out there.))

((I know that if I have to stay in here one minute more with him, I'll go crazy,)) she retorted and launched herself to the ground. Cosmo clambered after her with his claws hooking into the steps. In the time it took for her to land, Cosmo had only descended a few stairs. She watched his progress but didn't help- Cosmo probably wouldn't appreciate it.

When Cosmo had reached halfway down after five minutes, she relented and floated him to the ground. Cosmo went from there to hop onto her back and dug his claws into her. She hissed, he whined, and she concentrated on being something more helpful. As usual, she couldn't shapeshift. She didn't know why she'd hoped that'd change.

She looked up at the sky and gasped. With the slight breeze had come a darkening of the sky. It was still grey, but closer to black than before. She stumbled into Cosmo, in awe of the same thing.

"Things are changing," she breathed.

Cosmo didn't reply though she felt his silent assent. She sat on her haunches to contemplate the sky. If she really tried, she might be able to make out stars. Excitement coursed through her and she leapt for the pleasure of it. The world was changing. It was almost like being alive again.

((We're still alive,)) Cosmo reminded her. She stopped and pressed a paw to her chest. A cat's heartbeat faster than a human's or a fairy's and hers was racing.

"Sometimes, it doesn't feel that way," she answered. After all, their godson wasn't alive. And other denizens of this world weren't alive either. Sometimes, she forgot they were immortals trapped in purgatory. With that, her heart felt heavy again. Crocker's wish had sentenced them to a life sentence without parole.

((We'll get out,)) Cosmo said. ((Timmy'll get us out.))

On reflex, she looked up at the tree house. Hopefully, Timmy had finally fallen asleep. It was odd that she shared Cosmo's blind optimism. But what Timmy had done for them, of his own volition, inclined her to trust him. No matter how selfish the boy was, or how much he complained...Wanda sensed he was a good kid.

"His godparents must alternatively want to wring his neck and hug him sometimes," she remarked.

Cosmo inclined his head though she wasn't sure if he was agreeing or if he didn't have anything constructive to add. She twitched her head to where Crocker generally hid to ambush them, but he seemed absent. Perhaps he'd found someone else to torment. Hopefully, he hadn't shifted his attention to Charlotte; this was something that happened with too much frequency.

"What will become of them after we're gone, hun?" she asked. She didn't expect an answer. Her heart ached at the idea of leaving the ones she cared about. Eventually, they'd have to face their demons.

Maybe...they only moved along once they had settled whatever had set them here. Wanda hadn't attached herself to many people since their entrance- she couldn't rightfully say that people stuck here never left. She wondered if their penance was helping Timmy.

Lowering her head, she crouched on her haunches and stared up at the sky. Maybe somewhere in their universe, Jorgen and their families missed them. Maybe it would, after all, this time, be possible to return.

* * *

><p>"Poof"<p>

It was hard being unborn. It was also a hard concept to discuss with someone when one's vocabulary was limited to repetitions of one's name. Said name didn't really apply as the creature hadn't been born to receive said name. Thinking of all the paradoxes in this world could make one's head spin. So far, Poof had only successfully engaged Foop in these conversations...and even then, Foop hadn't shown much interest. From one unborn baby to another, it was dispiriting.

Foop's situation, however, was slightly different. Since Cosmo and Wanda hadn't had Poof, Foop wasn't quite...a being. He existed as a concept, much like a spirit one could call upon whim. Poof summoned him whenever he felt particularly lonely and Foop answered whenever he felt particularly bored. Usually, it led to Foop ignoring him and Poof heading off before his loneliness got the better of him.

He didn't know why he was here, anymore than he knew why he hadn't been born. Something within him had cottoned onto Timmy Turner, perhaps because his existence was related to him. Perhaps it had nothing to do with that and he recognized Timmy's fairy dust as deriving from his parents.

One thing he learned quickly was that while he (and Foop, by extension) stayed one of a kind, other people had more than one version. He'd tried talking to different versions of his parents, but none of them recognized him. The universe where he was supposed to exist either had skipped over his birth or it hadn't happened yet. The difference meant little to him. Not existing was not existing, regardless of the circumstances.

A version of Denzel Crocker cared for him in his limited way. In every universe, the man was deranged, but it was a matter of degree. This one hadn't lost his godparents at an early age and didn't tend toward fairy obsession. However, he also wasn't very social and disappeared randomly. Poof didn't know how he'd died, but he knew the man didn't have a heartbeat. Poof had an erratic one and didn't know what that meant either.

It was hard being a baby that couldn't hold a conversation and few people had any interest in.

He drifted over to the tree house where he knew Timmy slept. The ten-year-old had curled up in a ball far from the fire that Cosmo and Wanda must have conjured. The older fairies were nowhere in evidence and Poof sighed, looking for them briefly. He hadn't expected to encounter them. This version of Wanda was abrasive and defensive and the Cosmo was uncommunicative.

He turned into a cat and curled into a ball against Timmy's stomach. He had to wedge himself between Timmy's arm and leg. Tilting his head, he regarded the boy. Even separated from his fairies, he smelled strongly of them. Fairy dust coated his clothing and glittered on his skin. It tasted like home. Poof closed his eyes.

He didn't know if he'd ever find them. Perhaps he was doomed to wonder that. It was too big a problem to worry about now. The night grew long, such as it was, and Poof grew tired. He settled against his would-be god brother and fell into a dreamless sleep. The null world seldom dreamt.

* * *

><p>"Timeless"<p>

It was pathetic, really. Wanda didn't know why she'd sought their assistance. Perhaps it was desperation to hear another voice. Anything was better than listening to herself ramble. Perhaps it was to alleviate the misery she shared with Cosmo.

Or perhaps she'd merely grown bored of everything, including her fear of Crocker.

The time-locked Cosmo and Wanda lived in a two story house, if one could even call what they did living. As a matter of fact, Wanda wasn't entirely sure their hearts beat. If they did, they probably beat the same rhythm repeatedly. No one knew how they had become time-locked, only that it had involved a terrible wish. As that Cosmo and Wanda were unable to speak or react to their surroundings, no one ever would. Wanda would have said that at least they had each other, as she didn't have Cosmo the parrot, but that would be incorrect. As the alternate Cosmo and Wanda were time-locked, they were destined to repeat the same five minutes. Anything could have happened in those five minutes. One of them could be dying and reviving.

She didn't ring the doorbell. Instead, she pushed her way through the open door and into the foyer. She had smelled the magic before she saw it. Alternate Wanda was pleading with someone in the kitchen and fairy dust consumed her. The person with whom she begged appeared as a shade, much like Charlotte's friend Veronica.

For the barest instant, Wanda thought that the other fairy's eyes had slid to her. Then the moment was gone.

"…anything you ask!" she burst out. "Just don't hurt him!"

The shade's words were indistinct and she crept closer. A barrier, appearing out of nowhere, rejected her and sent her tumbling head over heels back into the foyer. Startled, her head aching from where it had smacked the stone tiles, she sat up and cleaned her head. It was reflexive, a cat instinct. Of late, she'd succumbed to quite a few cat instincts.

"There is nothing you can do for them," a sad voice intoned. Wanda's eyes strained in the dim light and distinguished Gary. The child looked somber.

"Gary? These are _your _godparents?" she asked.

"They were Timmy's," he said and then looked askance. "I might've had something to do with their current state. Or their forever state."

"How did they become trapped?" she asked. "And why can't they free themselves?"

"The loopin' magic is all that keeps Cos alive," Gary replied. "And that Wan sane. We plunged into the null world shortly after. By the time I had realized what was goin' on, there was nothin' I could do."

Slowly, unwilling, Wanda returned her attention to the shade. Alternate Cosmo was clasped between two lobster-like claws and he was frozen in the minute before the spirit ripped out his magic and tore him to shreds. Fairy blood had pooled beneath the shade. It sparkled.

"Gary, _why_?" she cried.

"Why does your Cos have a gimp wing?" he asked. "Why are you stuck as a cat? Why are any of us stuck here? Doomed timelines and a trick of fate."

Alternate Wanda gave a heartrending sob and Wanda felt her insides churn. She bolted toward the sound, to offer what little aid she could, and bounced off again. This time, she catapulted out of the house and into the street. Gary followed her. Wanda curled into a ball and shuddered, cleaning herself and praying the familiar motion would soothe her.

"What happened to their real godson?" she asked, trembling.

"I killed him," Gary said and winced at her glare. "I didn't mean to. It just sorta happened. Shit hit the fan and the next thin' I knew, there was a dead Tim-Tim on the street and Cos and Wan were _pissed_."

"I can't imagine why," she said archly. She might have left Cosmo alone for too long. Suddenly, the prospect of company was discouraging.

"It's not my fault," he protested. "I didn't know this would blow up."

"So you say," she replied, held up her wand, and vanished. Yes, it was considered rude to disappear in mid-conversation, but he'd done nothing polite, as far as she was concerned. His godparents were trapped in a perpetual horrible loop and he could do nothing but protest his innocence.

Cosmo was watching TV; it was one of the rare occurrences where something besides static filled the screen. On the set, she saw herself and Cosmo prior to Crocker's wish. That brought to mind other embraces now forbidden to her.

Stifling a sob, cursing that her feline form didn't permit emotional release, she darted away from Cosmo and the TV. Curling into a ball, she howled. The echoes bounced back to her and she howled again.

Cosmo nudged her and she thrust him away. Through their Bond, through the pitiful link left, she sensed his sorrow. To it, she added hers. Wordlessly, he keened with her. Under a gray sky, trapped in a situation she could neither alleviate nor terminate, she howled.

And trapped under the same gray sky, the alternate Wanda begged for salvation that would never come. Gary was right. Fate was cruel. And the things that humans did, that lingered, were crueler still.


End file.
